You’re probably sick of reading about ice cream, but I promise this will be the last ice cream article for awhile!

Did you know that in the United States July is National Ice Cream Month? I didn’t until last week. There is a Presidential Proclamation that declares July National Ice Cream Month. On July 9, 1984 President Ronald Reagan made a proclamation (Proclamation 5219 if you want to look it up) that stated that there was to be a National Ice Cream Day, which is the third Sunday of every July. President Reagan also made July National Ice Cream Month! Am I the only one who had no idea about this spectacular holiday? Anyway, in honor of the holiday I present to you some deliciously fun ice cream facts! So grab a bowl or cone of your favorite flavor and dig in!

Fun Facts:

• Although July is National Ice Cream month, the most ice cream is produced in June.
• The Top 10 ice cream consuming countries in the world are: 1) United States 2) New Zealand 3) Denmark 4) Australia 5) Belgium/Luxembourg 6)Sweden 7) Canada 8) Norway 9) Ireland 10) Switzerland.
• Americans are the number one consumer of ice cream worldwide. They eat 48 pints of ice cream per person per year on average.
• The U.S. also produces the most ice cream worldwide. California is the state that produces the most.
• Ice cream was available for the general population in France in the 1600’s.
• It wasn’t introduced into the Americas until the 1700’s and then it was only a treat for the upper class.
• About 9 percent of all the milk produced by U.S. dairy farmers is used to make ice cream.
• It takes 12 pounds of milk to make one gallon of ice cream.
• Immigrants at Ellis Island were served ice cream as part of the welcoming to America.
• The ice cream cone was invented at the 1904 World Fair in St. Louis. Some argue that it was created before then, but only became popular after the World Fair.
• It takes 50 licks on average to eat one scoop of ice cream.
• The most profitable day for ice cream sellers is almost always Sunday.
• About 13 percent of men and 8 percent of women admit to licking the bowl clean after eating ice cream.
• The origin of ice cream is a mystery; there are multiple countries that claim ice cream was created there.
• The most popular topping for ice cream is chocolate syrup.
• The top ten most popular flavors of ice cream are: 1) Vanilla with almost 29 percent of people saying this is their favorite. 2) Chocolate 3) Butter Pecan 4) Strawberry 5) Neapolitan 6) Chocolate Chip 7) French Vanilla 8) Cookies and Cream 9) Vanilla Fudge Ripple 10) Praline Pecan.

There you have it, some fun facts about ice cream. Ice cream is a treat that everyone can enjoy so it’s no wonder that we have a holiday to celebrate it. Even if you don’t live in the United States you can join in the celebration! Any excuse is a good excuse to eat ice cream right? I know I’m about to go have a bowl!

The image above is a map of the most popular ice cream in each state. Do you think it’s accurate? What’s your favorite ice cream flavor? Share with us below!