(CLIVE, Iowa), July 20, 2018 – Iowa’s pork producers are bringing a new option to the table – or more accurately to your taste buds – when the Iowa State Fair opens its gates on August 9th. At the building fondly known as the Pork Tent, Iowa pork producers will be serving a sweet and savory treat made from a quarter-pound of honey-cured pork belly that has been rubbed in brown sugar and cooked to perfection. Its name, quite simply, is Brown Sugar Pork Belly on a Stick.
The Brown Sugar Pork Belly on a Stick was submitted to the Iowa State Fair for its Best New Fair Foods for 2018, and after being compared to more than 50 other new food products, qualified for the semi-final round of the competition. With a final push from consumers voting on the state fair app, this new product was added to the finalist list of 2018 Best New Foods at the fair. In fact, two of the three finalists are pork products.
Pork producers and supporters who serve on the Iowa Pork Producers Association Pork Tent Committee were inspired to introduce a new product at the 2018 Iowa State Fair because they want to continue to introduce fairgoers to new pork products. “The Brow Sugar Pork Belly is a great product for us to do that,” said committee member Dave Moody of Nevada.
Kelsey Sutter, IPPA Marketing and Programs Director said, “Consumers have proven that bacon is king, and they’re now willing to branch outside the bacon craze and give pork belly its time in the lime light. Last year pork belly was one of the top three trending foods in the U.S. food industry, so that’s why we decided to bring Brown Sugar Pork Belly on a Stick to the Iowa State Fair.”
Find the Brown Sugar Pork Belly at the Pork Belly Express line on the north side of the Pork Tent building, or through the main Pork Tent food line on Grand Avenue. It will not be available at the Pork Chop on a Stick™ stands that sell only the pork chops. The pork belly on a stick will sell for $7 each.
Voting for the top new fair food will take place during the first six days of the fair, August 9-14. Fairgoers can vote on the Iowa State Fair app, and the winner will be announced on Wednesday, August 15.