Q: Why does the White House incur such a large expense to have its Christmas tree shipped from far away when it could be purchased from local states at far less expense?
—Martin Vaeth Sr., Loganville
A: The White House Christmas tree, which is displayed in the Blue Room, is donated by the family and farm that grew it, and has been every year since 1966, Rick Dungey, the public relations manager of the National Christmas Tree Association, told Q&A on the News in an email. “In addition, the family that grew the tree is responsible for any expense in getting the tree to the White House,” he said. “In some cases, when the grand champion farm has been close to D.C., they have hauled the tree with their own vehicle and trailer. In some cases, they have been fortunate enough to find a carrier willing to donate the hauling of the tree, as was the case this year with FedEx.” This year’s tree is from Wisconsin, the seventh time a grower from that state has provided the White House tree. North Carolina holds the record by supplying 11 trees since 1966.
Q: Is there any use for the fat removed from milk for skim or low-fat milk or from the caffeine removed from coffee to make decaffeinated coffee?
—Don Grulke, Tucker
A: The fat removed from milk in the process of making reduced fat or skim milk often is used in cream-based products, such as half and half, cream spreads and dips, or ice cream, a spokesman for the U.S. Department of Agriculture told Q&A on the News in an email. Caffeine that is removed from coffee is used in medicines and soft drinks.
Andy Johnston wrote this column. Do you have a question about the news? We’ll try to get the answer. Call 404-222-2002 or email q&a@ajc.com (include name, phone and city).
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