May is National Hamburger Month and Beef Month, so it’s a good time to hail to the hamburger and bow to the beef.

It may seem as simple as a food that got its name from Hamburg, Germany. But the original ground beef patty on a bun may have been from the Mongols who brought it to Russia; seafarers that brought the patty idea back to the port city of Hamburg; Louis’ Lunch – the New Haven, Conn., burger joint; “Hamburger Charlie” Nagreen; or, the Menches Brothers. But it seems no matter what the tale, the ending is still the same – consumers love a good burger.

Americans consumed approximately 11.9 billion burgers in 2007. Forty-one percent of Americans eat burgers at least once a week and 85 percent eat burgers once a month. That’s reason to tip your hat to beef producers.