The National Cholesterol Education Program has a welcome plug for poultry producers who raise turkeys. Gretta Irwin is executive director of the Iowa Turkey Federation, and is spending this week at the Iowa State Fair. The report says replacing protein sources in the diet with skinless, roasted turkey meat, lower in fat and cholesterol than some other meats, can be good even for people who aren’t yet watching their cholesterol. She says it’s good to start now instead of later when it DOES become an issue for you. Turkey-growers have been marketing big, roasted turkey drumsticks at the Fair for a couple of decades, and Irwin says they’re trying to interest hungry fairgoers in other turkey items that fall into that “skin-free,” lower-cholesterol category. They’re serving a marinated turkey tenderloin at the fair, hoping to convince people it’s easy to prepare as well as tasty. Irwin says poultry products have really hit the mainstream, with turkey Spam, turkey bacon and turkey pepperoni on the grocery shelves. The Iowa Pork Producers, Iowa Cattlemens’ Association, and other producers also feature their products at the fair, and the Iowa Egg Council on the fair’s opening day held its annual Easter-Egg Decorating contest, with a winner bound for the White House next spring.
