Longest Picnic Table: world record set by Safeway (Video)
PLEASANTON, Calif., USA -- As part of the introduction fora new line of high-quality foods, Safeway, Inc. (NYSE: SWY) created
a picnic table meauring a total of 305-feet - setting the new world record for Longest Picnic Table , on National Picnic Day. Photo: The world's longest picnic table, in San Francisco. Safeway celebrated National Picnic Day on Monday by breaking the Guinness World Record for longest picnic table and debuting its new private-label brand. (enlarge photo)
The previous Guinness world record for the longest picnic table measured 75.65 metres (248 ft 2 in) and was created by Deirdre Sargent (USA) at the New Orleans City Park, New Orleans, USA.
Guinness World Records also recognized the largest picnic blanket; it measured 1,760 m² (18,944.41 ft²) and it was woven at the Melin Tregwynt Mill in Wales, UK.
The record-setting picnic, held at the Marina Green in San Francisco, featured Safeway's Open Nature, a newly launched line of all-natural foods that includes meat and poultry, bread, yogurt, ice cream and salad dressing products, that were prepared by Food Network chef Tyler Florence.
Safeway also succeeded at building a table exceeding 305 ft.
In the midst of the excitement, Food Network Chef Tyler Florence demonstrated recipes for picnic guests using Safeway's Open Nature 100 percent natural line of high-quality foods.
With several published recipe books that emphasize the importance of home-cooked, nourishing meals, celebrity chef Tyler Florence was an ideal fit for the Open Nature picnic.
Florence, a longtime Safeway shopper, used a variety of Open Nature products to create the recipes he prepared onsite.
He also enjoyed mingling with guests and posing for photos.
"With the Golden Gate Bridge in the background, hundreds of smiling guests, and the World's Longest Picnic Table covered with mouth-watering food, I was definitely in my element," said Florence, a Food Network chef and successful restaurateur.
"Bringing people together around a delicious meal is a true passion of mine so it was an honor and joy to take part in this special event."
By the Numbers
* 305 feet was the measured length of the World's Longest Picnic Table, which is 5 feet longer than a football field and equivalent to 38 standard picnic tables
* 7,176 feet of FSC Certified Douglas Fir wood and 1,032 bolts were used to construct the table
* It took 4 people 10 days to build the World's Longest Picnic Table
* The World's Longest Picnic Table weighs more than 11,304 lbs
* This table breaks the previous Guinness World Record (248 feet, 2 inches) set in New Orleans, October 2009
* 405 people sat around the World's Longest Picnic Table at one time
"It was astounding to see so many people come together around a single table to enjoy a meal made with our Open Nature products," said Mike Minasi, president of marketing for Safeway.
"Our customers have been asking for a natural product line and Safeway delivered, setting a very high standard for what natural should mean – 100 percent natural, 100 percent real.
We are so proud to roll this new brand out to our shoppers and we knew that a giant picnic on National Picnic Day was the perfect way to do it."
