The Roanoke-Chowan Pork-Fest is an annual regional event held each May since 2002 [1] on the grounds of the Brady C. Jefcoat Museum in Murfreesboro, North Carolina. [2] [3] It is noted as a showcase to sample the type of cooking the region is famous for. [4]
Largely a barbecue cooking contest, funds from the event benefit the maintenance and operation of the Museum. Judgement of the winner is performed by 3 certified, licensed judges selected from a list of approved judges from the North Carolina Pork Council. [5]
In 2010, the first place prize was awarded as a tie for the first time to Fred Woodard of Smithfield, Virginia and J.W. Condon of Newport, North Carolina. [6] The competition is sanctioned by the North Carolina Pork Council [7] and is part of the Whole Hog Barbecue Series [8] where the winners of this competition compete for the state championship in Raleigh each October. [7] Several winners of the Roanoke-Chowan Pork-Fest have won the state championship including one year where the first, second and third place winners of the state championship were from this competition. [5]
No event was held 2020-2023 because of the pandemic but it was reinstated in 2024. [9]