SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WCIA) — The Illinois General Assembly has ba-con-sidered a measure that would honor Illinois’s pig farmers.
A resolution advocated by the Illinois Pork Producers Association has officially designated May 3 as Illinois Bacon Day.
The pork industry supports more than 57,000 jobs across the state.
“The hardworking hog farmers who raise this high-quality product deserves our support,” Senator Tom Bennett (R-Gibson City) said. “Whether it’s plain or applewood-smoked, where the store-bought or artisan-made, bacon is a meat for any meal.”
Illinois is the fourth largest pork producing state in the U.S. and contributes an estimated $13.8 billion to the economy. Pig farmers in Illinois produce approximately 6 billion slices of bacon each year.
“It is the best day in Illinois,” Sen. Chapin Rose (R-Mahomet) said. “Republicans, and yes, even the Democrats, can all cheer Bacon Day in Illinois.”
The measure passed the Senate Wednesday afternoon. National Bacon Day is Dec. 30, and International Bacon Day is Sept. 2.
