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Vinegar has a lot of explaining to do. So do onions and most of the other condiments and ingredients sitting out of sight and out of mind behind your kitchen cabinet doors or inside your refrigerator.

For every dried leaf sprig, nut or spicy root, there is a story apparently just waiting to be told.

Even condiments such as horseradish have some industry trade group telling you more than you needed or wanted to know about that food. It's all about getting your attention.

Some of these trade associations resort to the Hollywood trick of handing out awards.

The Association of Dressings and Sauces recently named Marzetti's Asiago Peppercorn as the "2006 Dressing of the Year."

Unlike Cooperstown, N.Y. (baseball), or Canton, Ohio (football), you cannot visit the Tortilla Hall of Fame. It is more metaphor than place. The Tortilla Industry Association, TIA, headquartered in McLean, Va., named two additional inductees to the still virtual hall at its September meeting in Las Vegas.

The six processors that make up the Horseradish Information Council (www.horseradish.org) say that horseradish is "America's Favorite Root." You wouldn't expect them to vote for carrots. If horseradish is so popular, wouldn't you think there would be more than six processors?

In order to attract your attention, some trade associations dispense odd facts that, if repeated, would clear space around you at any cocktail party. Here are our horseradish friends again.

"In the U.S., an estimated 24 million pounds of horseradish roots are ground and processed annually to produce approximately 6 million gallons of prepared horseradish — enough to generally season sandwiches to reach 12 times around the world."

They probably mean "generously," but the image of 12 rings of sandwiches circling the Earth is enough to make you forget all about horseradish.

The American Pie Council (www.piecouncil.org) tells us that pie has been around since the ancient Egyptians.

There are fewer than 1,000 onion farmers in the United States, says the National Onion Association (www.onions-usa.org). Maybe farmers don't like to cry any more than the rest of us. (The tears are caused by sulfuric compounds within the onion, the association tells us. It says you can minimize tearing by chilling the onion and cutting the root end last.)

For a longer shelf life, put mushrooms in a paper bag, claims the Mushroom Council, whose motto is "mushrooms: elegant, earthy, enigmatic."

Bees must tap 2 million flowers to make a pound of honey, says the National Honey Board.

Some trade groups try to attract attention with calendar events. Jan. 23 is National Pie Day, say our friends the pie people. March is National Noodle Month, says the National Pasta Association (www.ilovepasta.org). April is National Pecan Month, according to the National Pecan Shellers Association, NPSA (www.ilovepecans.org).

Others cloak themselves in academic-sounding terms. Vinegar is supported by an "institute" with a "scientific committee of technical representatives from member companies."

The 2,000 members of the Research Chef Association practice something called Culinology (a term they have both capitalized and trademarked). According to its creators, Culinology "is a blending of two disciplines — traditional food sciences practices and traditional culinary arts."

It is a wonder that any American is obese because almost everything we eat is good for us, according to industry groups.

Pecans contain 19 vitamins and minerals, antioxidants and no cholesterol, the shellers say. "One of the reasons nuts, including pecans, are getting noticed is their superior protein structure. They make excellent heart-healthy substitutes for high-fat meats," says Kimberly Lummus, a registered dietitian with NPSA, in a news release.

Blueberries are also high in antioxidants, says the U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council.

Onions have only 30 calories per serving and are fat-, sodium- and cholesterol-free.

Four or five mushrooms contain 20 calories and zero grams of fat and are a source of numerous nutrients.

Pasta is good for you, according to the National Pasta Association, as part of the Mediterranean diet. That diet "is low in fat, includes plenty of fruits and vegetables, pasta, legumes (dried peas and beans), and whole grain breads, plus small amounts of dairy products and meat, poultry and fish."

Even honey can be good for you. Although it is pretty much just carbs and water, the National Honey Board says it also contains small amounts of vitamins and minerals, including niacin, riboflavin, pantothenic acid and the ever-mentioned antioxidants.

But then reality sets in. The finger waggers at the Calorie Control Council (www. caloriecontrol.org) are here to remind you about that holiday meal you polished off. They say the average American may have consumed more than 4,500 calories and a belt-busting 229 grams of fat at the traditional holiday meal with all the trimmings. And that isn't counting the midnight raid on the fridge for leftovers or those four or five candy canes you had for a "snack" in the morning.

There is a lot riding on getting your attention. The last available figures for the tortilla industry (2002), for example, peg sales at $5.7 billion per year and rising. Roberto Quiñones, the group's executive director, says tortillas have gone from a specialty item to the big leagues.

With a core membership of about 200, the association serves primarily to connect industry suppliers and buyers. He says: "Nationally, there are about 1,000 to 1,500 medium to large suppliers, not counting the supermarkets."

The supermarkets are a new area for sales growth around the country, he says. Some supermarket chains are adding tortillerias to their stores and making the flat bread in-house, just as they added bakeries in the past.

And with that come new products. Quiñones says that just as people got used to "artisan breads," they expect new tortilla flavors as well.

Quiñones wisely refused to get involved in a long-standing family argument about whether Tucson or New Mexico has better tortillas. "Some people like them thick, some like them thin. Some like them small or large, with more brown spots or fewer brown spots," he says diplomatically.

Despite the national attention it generated, his industry group was unaware of the somewhat contentious practice of University of Arizona students flinging the floured discs during commencement. Although Quiñones did come down on the side of increased sales: "It seems like things have gotten awfully PC," he says.

If tortilla sales remain airborne, maybe TIA will break ground on a hall of fame building someday soon.