Bacon For Life Means Lots Of Sizzle, Plenty Of Calories And Fat

INDIANAPOLIS – Six weeks after the Hoosier Lottery’s “Bringing Home The Bacon” scented, scratch-off ticket launched, no one has won the grand prize – a 20-year supply of bacon.

There are four instant winners yet to claim their bacon – and a second chance supply up for grabs as well.

So bacon lovers still have time to get in on the action.

The prize is $250 per year’s worth of sizzling goodness. That’s about 55.7 pounds of bacon a year – almost half a pig. The winner will have about 4.6 pounds of bacon per month.

And over 20 years, the winner could consume 1,336,800 calories – or an average of 183.6 calories per day.

The winner could also take the money instead. Christy Tunnell, president of the Indiana Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, said lottery players should consider choosing that option.

“A pound of bacon a week is a bit much for the idea that everything can be enjoyed in moderation,” Tunnell said. “I would highly recommend a lump sum of cash. That way, if the winner wanted to enjoy some bacon, again in moderation, they could use some of the money to do that.”

After all, eating that much bacon would also mean consuming nearly 200 pounds of fat over two decades. That’s about 12 grams of fat daily – about a third to a quarter of the total fat individuals should consume in a day, depending on their total calories.

Tunnell said taking the money also means the winner could “purchase fruits, vegetables, and high quality grain products and lean proteins to keep themselves and their family healthy and have a well-balanced diet.”

But Jolene Ketzenberger editor and host of EatDrinkIndy.com, says a pound a bacon a week for a family isn’t really that much.

“For our family of five, that’s enough for every one to have three or four slices,” she said. “So that would be enough for a breakfast of bacon and eggs,” a meal that would average about 425 calories.

Ketzenberger said a pound of bacon would be enough for everyone in a family of five to have a BLT sandwich, which is also about 450 calories but does not contain as much fat and cholesterol as the bacon and egg breakfast.

For desert, Ketzenberger suggests trying bacon baklava, a Turkish sweet pastry made with phyllo dough and held together with honey.

Check out more bacon recipes

With all the great recipe options, Sarah Ford, director of public and industry relations for Indiana Pork, said she hopes the winners don’t stop with their pound of bacon per week.

“I hope they eat more than that,” Ford said. “The more they eat the better.”

And Tunnell said another option is sharing the bacon winnings to spread the deliciousness – as well as the fat and calories – around.

“Don’t feel as though you have to consume a pound of bacon a week by yourself,” Tunnell said.

“Every food can be included in a healthy diet, as long as the bulk of your overall intake is filled with highly nutritious foods; fruits, vegetables, high quality whole grains, lean proteins,” she said.

Already, the lottery ticket has been a huge success for Indiana Pork, a nonprofit group that represents 3,000 Indiana hog farmers. The group is partnering with the Hoosier Lottery on the project and each ticket features one of 10 fun facts about pork.

“We have gotten $8.5 million of unearned media,” Ford said. “It’s good because bacon is being promoted.”

The bacon prizes will be fulfilled with bacon that is made strictly from Indiana pork.

If for some reason a winner does not want the grand prize of a year supply of bacon, they can take the money as an annuity or a lump sum of cash.

Players who don’t win instantly can send their tickets into Hoosier Lottery for a second chance prize of 20 years of bacon. There are already thousands of second chance tickets entered.

The bacon-scented scratch and sniff ticket was created to increase revenue for the lottery and it will be promoted at the Indiana State Fair, where the pork producers and the lottery have nearby booths, said Courtney Arango, public information officer for the Hoosier Lottery.

The lottery went through about five other scents before they finally settled on the final product, Arango said.

To see updates of how many prizes remain visit the Hoosier Lottery website.

Max Bomber is a reporter for TheStatehouseFile.com a news website powered by Franklin College journalism students.