A Big Bacon Festival Will Return to Iowa This Spring

Attention bacon-lovers! A festival involving all things bacon will return to Iowa this May! The 16th annual Blue Ribbon Bacon Festival is set for Saturday, May 4th at the Agricultural Building on the Iowa State Fairgrounds.

According to the event website, "the Blue Ribbon Bacon Festival (BRBF) is for those wise folks who know that bacon is more than just a breakfast food—it’s a lifestyle. Baconfest is an event created by devout bacon-lovers for bacon-lovers. Every year passionate people from all corners of the wide world flock to Baconfest in Des Moines, IA (the famous hog state) fixin’ to feast on tasty bacon delicacies, to get weird, and to have a grand ol’ time." Some of the menu items at this year's event include bacon balls, bacon duck wontons, bacon pickle mac, the Elvis Pizza, bacon monkey bread, brown sugar bacon ice cream, and chicken bacon alfredo manicotti. In addition to all these delicious bacon creations, there will also be a concert from Iowa's favorite band, the Pork Tornadoes!

It just so happens that this year's Bacon Fest falls on a special holiday. May 4th is Star Wars Day, so the event's theme is "Bacon Wars - May the Bacon be With You!" The Facebook page says there will be all sorts of themed bars, a silent disco, a "spacey-vibed cantina," Wookie axe-throwing, and "a myriad of other weird and wacky space-themed attractions."

Tickets for the 2024 Blue Ribbon Bacon Festival have already gone on sale. General admission tickets are $29, but there are also early entry tickets for $49. Those get you in the door an hour before general admission, exclusive food and alcohol samples, and more. Tickets and t-shirts can be purchased online HERE. Please note that the event is for ages 21 and up.