(Des Moines) Volunteers from Cass County joined the Iowa Pork Tent Committee on the fair’s opening day on Thursday. This year marks the 40th anniversary of the Iowa Pork Tent. Former Cass County resident Duane Dreager now living in Nodaway has served on the committee for over three decades.
“The first year we attempted to sell Chops on a Stick, we pulled a trailer out front, cooked the chops on a charcoal grill, priced them at three-dollars apiece, and couldn’t sell a one,” recalls Dreager. “We were giving away more samples than we were selling. So we dropped the price to two-dollars-sold out, the next year we priced back to three-dollars and it has ballooned since then.”
Dreager says traditionally, over the course of 11 days, the Pork Tent sells 15,000 to 18,000 pork sandwiches, 12,000 Iowa Chops, and between 60,000 and 65,000 Chops on a Stick. “It’s a quality product. It’s gluten-free, and the best value per ounce on the fairgrounds.”
The Iowa Pork Tent is now selling a sugar-coated pork side on a stick.
The latest attendance figures showed more than 112,000 people attended the fair during the first three days. This was 16,655 less than the first three days in 2019. Sunday’s attendance figures will be out later.
