Bacon, barbecue and beer will be among attractions when the Ohio Pork Council holds its inaugural Pork-a-Palooza festival Saturday, May 19, at the Delaware County Fairgrounds.
"The Pork-a-Palooza festival is intended to show consumers the versatility of pork, as an ice-cream flavor or in a sandwich," said Emily Bir, Ohio Pork Council director of communications.
"We'll have nine vendors selling a variety of pork-centric food items, like pulled pork, ribs, bacon, barbecue and dishes that have pork as an inspiration," she said.
The vendors will be food trucks or area restaurants.
Two live bands will perform, as a duo from 1 to 3 p.m. and as a five-person band from 4 to 7 p.m.
The event will include three inflatable features for children and a dunk-tank fundraiser. For $2, festival-goers can get four chances to throw a ball to dunk a representative of a local organization that will benefit from the proceeds. They include Habitat for Humanity of Delaware and Union Counties Executive Director Todd Miller and Don Howard with the Delaware County Fair Board.
The Pork-a-Palooza "also will show how pork is grown at pig farms," Bir said.
"We live in era where consumers are increasingly aware of how food is raised and have a lot of questions," she said. "We want to be transparent as a community as how pork is raised in Ohio."
She said a number of pork farms operate in central Ohio and Delaware County.
"We'll have displays on modern pork farming. A lot of pigs are raised indoors, in buildings with ventilation systems, built far from neighboring houses or buildings. ... A clean and healthy environment is stressed," Bir said.
Pork-a-Palooza admission is $10, with children under age 12 admitted free. Beer will be the only alcohol sold.
"We're excited to host the Ohio Pork Council," said Delaware County Fairgrounds manager Sandra Kuhn. Pork-a-Palooza events will be in the merchants building and on the midway area, she said.
Kuhn said the fairgrounds hosts between 30 and 40 events annually. Most are held between April and October, because none of the buildings used for events are heated.
"The Delaware County Fairgrounds has been a wonderful organization to work with. We're very excited to hold the first-ever Pork-a-Palooza at the Delaware County Fairgrounds," Bir said.
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