ELIZABETHTOWN, PA. — At the recent American Association of Meat Processors (AAMP) convention in Des Moines, Iowa, more than 600 products were entered into the American Cured Meat Championships.

Prizes were awarded to small meat processors around the US with nearly 30 different cured meat categories.

During the convention 45 volunteers along with AAMP staff members and ACMC coordinators spent nearly 300 hours selecting winners for each competition.

The 2022 winner of the Clarence Knebel Best of Show Memorial Award came from the Heavyweight Bacon category, from Bardine’s Country Smokehouse, in Crabtree, Pa. Additionally, Dewig Meats of Haubstadt, Ind., won the Cured Meats Excellence Award. That award goes to the processor with the best overall performance in the ACMC.

At each convention, the ACMC brings small processors’ best sausage, bacon, hams, snack sticks and other cured meat specialties to the judging room. 

The full list of category winners can be seen on the AAMP website.