Each Fall, the best whole hog barbecue chefs in North Carolina square off to become our state champion. The Whole Hog Barbecue Championship is the culmination of a qualifying series that includes more than 25 N.C. Pork Council-certified local barbecue competitions statewide.

This year, the State Championship will return to Downtown Raleigh as part of the International Bluegrass Music Association’s Wide Open Bluegrass Festival.

All of competition barbecue then gets chopped up by the Inter-Faith Food Shuttle and sold as part of the Wide Open Bluegrass Festival. 100% of the proceeds go towards the Inter-Faith Food Shuttle.