CB01-FF.01 February 5, 2001
Valentine's Day: February 14
Valentine Cards
-- In 1997, the nation's greeting card publishers shipped $277 million
worth of Valentine cards, more than the total of any other type of
special occasion greeting card except Christmas cards and up from
$210 million in 1992. Sixteen companies shipped $100,000 or more
worth of these cards.
http://www.census.gov/prod/www/abs/97ecmani.html
Flowers
-- If your valentine prefers flowers, we've got you covered! A total of
25,617 florists nationwide plied their trade in 1998, employing
123,223 people.
http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2000/cb00-116.html
-- It is possible the flowers you buy this year will have come from
Colombia, our nation's leading supplier of cut flowers. U.S. imports of
cut flowers from Colombia between January and October 2000 were valued
at $300 million. Or the flowers could have been grown right here in the
U.S. of A.: domestic production of cut flowers was worth $509 million
in 1998. Consumer spending on cut flowers averaged $28 per person in
1998.
http://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/www/
http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/
Chocolate and Candy
-- The chocolate and candy you give or receive probably were made in
one of our nation's manufacturing establishments. In 1998, 1,093 such
establishments, employing 44,973 people, produced chocolate and
cocoa products. These manufacturers shipped $11.5 billion worth of
goods that year. Meanwhile, 627 U.S. establishments, employing
25,320 people, manufactured nonchocolate confectionary products.
They shipped $6.4 billion worth of goods that year.
http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2000/cb00-116.html
http://www.census.gov/mcd/
-- In at least one respect, California and Pennsylvania could be
considered the nation's sweetest states. California has more
establishments making nonchocolate confectionary products (85)
than any other state. California also leads the nation in the number of
estabishments making chocolate and cocoa products, with 115, closely
followed by Pennsylvania with 110.
http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2000/cb00-116.html
-- Then again, these sugary delights may have come from outside the United
States. Between January and October 2000, the United States imported
$314 million worth of chocolate and other foods containing cocoa from
Canada, more than from any other country. Canada also was the leading
supplier of nonchocolate candy to the United States during the same
period, with shipments totaling $169 million.
http://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/www/
-- Though people can buy candy in many places, perhaps the best single
retail source is one of the 3,826 confectionary and nut stores located
in the United States in 1998.
http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2000/cb00-116.html
-- If you're planning on waiting until the last minute to buy flowers and
candy for your sweetie, you'll be glad to know that some retailers give
you a choice: there were more than 4,000 florists in 1997
(roughly 1 in 6) who also sold candy.
http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2000/cb00-129.html
-- Americans consumed 26 pounds of candy per person in 1999 no doubt a
large portion of it on Valentine's Day.
http://www.census.gov/cir/www/ma20d.html
Romantic-Sounding Places
-- Niagara Falls long has been considered one of our nation's more
romantic places. But it doesn't have the most romantic-sounding
name. Among the contenders for that distinction are Valentine,
Neb., whose population was an estimated 2,862 in 1999, and
Valentine, Texas, at 260.
-- Another contender is Loveland, Colo. With a population of 48,385, it is
the most populous of the eight places around the nation that have the
word "love" as part of their name. The others: Lovejoy, Ga.; Loves
Park, Ill.; Lovelock, Nev.; Love Valley, N.C.; Loveland,
Ohio; Loveland, Okla.; and Lovelady, Texas. If you still haven't gotten
your fill of love, try visiting Love County, Okla., Love township,
Ill. or Lovejoy township,Ill.
http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2000/cb00-178.html
Marriage and Divorce
-- During 1998, 2.3 million marriages and 1.1 million divorces took place
in the United States. That breaks down to about 6,200 marriages and
3,100 divorces a day.
http://www.census.gov/statab/www/
-- Nevada was both the nation's marriage capital and its divorce capital,
racking up the highest marriage rate (79.5 marriages per 1,000
population), as well as the highest divorce rate (6.8 per 1,000) of any
state in 1998. Hawaii was a distant runner-up in marriages, with 17.5
per 1,000 population while Wyoming was a close second in divorces
(6.7 per 1,000). (Note: Divorce rate data are unavailable for
California, Colorado, Indiana and Louisiana.
http://www.census.gov/statab/www/
-- The estimated U.S. median age at first marriage in 1998 was 25.0 years
for women and 26.7 years for men. The age for women equaled the 20th
century high reached in 1997 while the age for men dipped 0.4 years
since reaching a 20th century high in 1996.
http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/1999/cb99-03.html
Singleness
-- There were 114 unmarried men (i.e., never married, widowed or
divorced), ages 18 to 44, for every 100 unmarried women of the same
ages in 1998. At older ages, however, the ratio reverses to 146
unmarried women for every 100 unmarried men for 45- to 64-year-olds
and 315 unmarried women for every 100 unmarried men for people 65 and
over.
http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/1999/cb99-03.html
-- In 1998, 13.7 million people, ages 25 to 34, had never been married,
representing 35 percent of all people in this age group. The total of
never-been-marrieds among the 35- to -44 age bracket dropped to 6.8
million or 15 percent.
http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/1999/cb99-03.html
The preceding facts come from population estimates; the 1997 Economic
Census; County Business Patterns; Current Population Survey; U.S. import
and export trade reports; the Statistical Abstract of the United States;
Annual Survey of Manufactures; and Current Industrial Reports. The data
are subject to sampling variability and other sources of error. Questions
or comments should be directed to the Census Bureau's Public Information
Office (Tel: 301-457-3030; Fax: 301-457-3670; E-mail: pio@census.gov).
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