During the hot and sticky month of July, it’s impossible to get me outside. Unless you’re offering the one cold and sticky treat that we all know and love: ice cream. This is apparently common knowledge, because July is officially National Ice Cream Month, and National Ice Cream Day is always observed on the third Sunday of the month.
Here’s a brief history behind the truly iconic holiday that honestly, I think should be celebrated every day.
The Presidential Roots
Former President Ronald Reagan is best known for his efforts to end the Cold War, but I think that his designation of July as National Ice Cream Month is honestly equally important. What else cools down conflict like a good cone?
The ice cream industry actually makes up a significant portion of the US economy (it’s a $39 billion industry, like what?!?). So this holiday is no joke.
This Law Is Serious AF
He wrote out a very serious proclamation to officially recognize the new holiday, and I’m just gonna lay out some excerpts because this declaration is EVERYTHING.
“Ice cream is a nutritious and wholesome food.”
If the president said it, it must be true, right?
“Over 887 gallons of ice cream were consumed in the United States [last year.]”
To modernize that stat for ya, Americans consumed 1.54 billion gallons of ice cream in 2015, which means that each American eats about 23 pounds of ice cream a year. Yep, just gonna leave that there.
“I call upon the people of the United States to observe these events with appropriate ceremonies and activities.”
I’m honestly unsure of what constitutes an “appropriate ceremonies and activities,” but I do agree that ice cream deserves a certain level of decorum and respect. See you at McDonald’s for a free soft serve cone!
These holidays have been officially recognized since 1984, and I encourage everyone to celebrate National Ice Cream Day and National Ice Cream Month appropriately throughout July. Ask not what your ice cream can do for you, ask what you can do for your ice cream (wrong president, I know, but same idea).