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Iowa Pork Barbecue Competition Calls on Backyard Grill Masters to Show Their Skills

Are you the king or queen of backyard barbecue? It’s time to put your skills to the test! Amateur grillers from across Iowa are invited to showcase their talent at the backyard BBQ competition, part of the BBQ & Brew at the Ballpark event this summer in Des Moines.

Presented by the Iowa Pork Producers Association (IPPA) and the Iowa Cubs, the third-annual BBQ & Brew is a fun-filled, charitable event happening Saturday, June 21 at Principal Park. Open to the public, attendees will enjoy mouthwatering Iowa pork, locally brewed craft beers, live music, and expert cooking demonstrations—all while supporting food pantries across the state.

A Chance to Win Big & Earn Bragging Rights

“This event is all about celebrating Iowa’s love for pork and barbecue,” said Aaron Juergens, IPPA president and a pig farmer from Carroll. “It’s a great opportunity for backyard pitmasters to step up, show off their barbeque techniques, and compete for top honors—and some serious cash.”

The all-pork BBQ & Brew Contest will award nearly $12,000 in total prizes, with competitors vying for top spots in three categories: pork loin, pork butt, and St. Louis-style ribs. Cash prizes will go to the top 10 overall competitors, as well as the top 10 finishers in each category. Certified judges will evaluate entries based on appearance, taste, and tenderness.

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There's old hog barns under that field now. The old hog barn site on the farm has been sitting there for decades, and this is the week it finally came out: concrete pad, burn pile, charred lumber, all of it loaded into a CAT 725C rock truck and buried in a pit we dug back in the timber.

Tork's been waiting his whole life to drive one of these, so he gets the keys to a 50,000 pound rock truck and I ride shotgun. The excavator loads, the dozer clears the timber, the drone shows the whole site from above, and by sundown there's nothing left of the old place but a smooth patch of dirt. It's a weird feeling erasing something that was here before either of us, but the farm has to keep moving.