Think you’ve got the bristly chops to be crowned a pork industry legend? Or maybe you know a producer whose chin foliage deserves its own blue ribbon? Whether you’re sporting an award-winning lumberjack mane, some classic pork chops, or just a respectable scruff and a willingness to be a good sport, we want to see it!
Nominations are officially open for Farm Journal’s PORK 2026 Best Beards in the Pork Industry Contest.
Between upcoming holiday dinners, family gatherings and year-end celebrations, there’s no shortage of photo ops. But don’t feel like you need to dress it up, either—some of our favorite past winners were captured in their everyday “work clothes” right out in the barn. Snap a photo, send in your nomination and let’s see who’s raising the bar for barnyard beards this year!
The 2025 winner was Jared Jacobs from Drexel, Mo.
“This squared-off beauty was easy to pick out of a crowded room and went to the top of a quality class in the beard contest,” explains 2025 Judge Chip Flory last year. “As in any class, showmanship and how the entry is fit for presentation matters, and the groom on this one makes all the difference.”
Check out the winners from last year here.
It’s easy to nominate yourself or nominate your friends (with their permission, of course). Simply send in a photo by Dec. 12 of your beard or someone’s beard you’d like to nominate (with their approval) and include the entrant’s connection to the pork industry to jshike@farmjournal.com. Past winners of the contest are not eligible following their win (we want to spread the love a little!).
