Burning Question: Why do we have all those national food and drink days?

So you missed National Eat Ice Cream for Breakfast Day. No one will care if you crave a little butter pecan on another morning, right?

Sorry. The day has come and gone. Ice cream for breakfast is strictly enforced—the bacon, eggs and cereal lobbies have Washington in their deep pockets—and the punishment for violating the one-day-only policy can be severe.

OK, none of that is true—apart from the bit about National Eat Ice Cream for Breakfast Day, which happened last Saturday, Feb. 5. Sarah Cook, owner of Café Carmel, celebrated the occasion by offering a deal on cones. And she says several people took advantage.

“It was good fun,” Cook says. “And it was such a sunny day.”

The holiday was proclaimed by President Lyndon Johnson to commemorate the late John F. Kennedy, who devoured a large bowl of mint chocolate chip every…Again, no.

Not certain, but it’s unlikely JFK started his days that way. And Johnson had no say in the matter. Credit belongs to a woman from Rochester, New York as a way to tame her unruly children.

That some random parent hunkered inside with children during a snowstorm almost 60 years ago can create a national observance that led to an ice cream special at Café Carmel over the weekend—and to a number of people breaking traditional breakfast rules—is rather remarkable. 

Cook, who was born in London, notes that Americans are more willing to load up on holidays, especially unofficial ones, and was happy to take advantage of a fun marketing opportunity.

“I happened to find National Eat Ice Cream for Breakfast Day was a thing,” she says. “It’s amazing the different things one can find.”

Indeed. There are somewhat useful holidays, such as Fruitcake Toss Day (Jan. 3), which if you received a supermarket cake with neon green cherries is inspirational. Recognized food and beverages include cassoulet, peach melba, fig newtons, hot buttered rum, Irish coffee—and we’re still in the January calendar.

The numbers vary as new national days are piled on, but by some counts there are more than 1,000 major and minor holidays related to food or drink alone.

Feb. 6 was Pork Rind Appreciation Day. Today (Feb. 11) is National Latte Day. Tomorrow it’s plum pudding’s turn in the spotlight. And like the ice cream for breakfast lark, there are other more carefree observances—National Something On A Stick Day (March 28), for instance. National Beer Day (which kinda should occur more often; after all, tacos have claimed 52 Tuesdays) falls on April 7, preceded by New Beer’s Eve.

So how did all of this come about?

There have been official declarations. President Ronald Reagan signed National Ice Cream Month and National Catfish Day into whatever status they hold (“signed into law” is probably not the right phrasing). President Bill Clinton gave us American Wine Appreciation Week—again, something we should do more often.

These can be useful in the promotion of a product or dish, and many have started with PR departments hoping to gain some attention. Yet many also result from viral social media posts or people acting on a whim. John Bryan Hopkins, creator of Foodimentary.com—one of the websites tracking food and beverage days—reportedly entered National Tater Tot Days and other observances because he could.

So anyone can get in on this? I’m going to hop on Instagram and get National Day Drinking in the Office Month recognized…um, editor Sara Rubin just issued a threat so vile in language that I can’t repeat it here.

Anyway, another website that amalgamates food and drink days is NationalToday.com, founded by Ben Kaplan. He explained in a 2021 Bloomberg interview that many days just catch on with the public, often spread via social media, and make it to the calendar. Companies looking to promote a brand must pay a fee and gain approval of the websites.

Why brands would be so keen to add to the book of days is obvious. According to Bloomberg, In the days surrounding National Tequila Day in 2020, sales of the Casa Dragones brand jumped 30 percent. Ahead of Gin & Tonic Day a year ago, the mixers company Fever-Tree benefitted from demand for tonic that rose 11 percent.

Café Carmel plans to make use of another celebration by offering a rich home-style clam chowder on Feb. 25, which just happens to be National Clam Chowder Day and National New England Clam Chowder Day.

Yep, days, weeks and months can be claimed by many. February is Great American Pie Month, Grapefruit Month and Snack Food Month, among others. January is conflicted, with Dry January and Ginuary part of a lengthy list.

Some are intended to be vague or silly, probably to stir social media posts. National Dadgum That’s Good Day (March 1) is one. How about National Pizza with the Works Except Anchovies Day (Nov. 12)?

So that’s how it happens. Marketing ploys, viral posts or—rarely—by government proclamation. Observing the unofficial holidays is optional. Except, of course, for the soon-to-be-established National Day Drinking in the Office Month, which…Gotta run.