Canada's Largest Ribfest is the name of an annual ribfest food festival held in Spencer Smith Park by the lake shore in Burlington, Ontario.[1] The Burlington Lakeshore Rotary Club organizes the four-day-long Ribfest to raise money for charity[2] during the Labour Day weekend.
| Canada's Largest Ribfest | |
|---|---|
 The logo of Canada's Largest Ribfest | |
| Begins | 06 September 2021 |
| Frequency | Annual |
| Location(s) | Spencer Smith Park, Burlington, Ontario, Canada |
| Inaugurated | 1996 |
| Participants | approx. 175,000 |
| Website | http://www.canadaslargestribfest.com/ |
History
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The Burlington Lakeshore Rotary Club held the first Ribfest in 1996, then simply called the Ribfest.
By 2001, the festival had expanded to include ribs from 12 traveling rib teams.[3]
The 2004 festival anticipated about 150,000 people eating 36 tonnes of ribs. It was called the Maple Leaf Pork Rotary Ribfest that year.[4]
In early 2009, the Burlington Ribfest rebranded itself as "Canada's Largest Ribfest"—with its logo redesigned by Little Green Tree.[5] In September, 175,000 people and 18 rib teams attended the 14th annual Canada's Largest Ribfest, consuming 150,000 lbs of ribs over the weekend.[6][7] An estimated $320,000 was raised for local charities.
In 2010, the Canadian Federal government provided Can$98,610 in funding for the Ribfest as part of a Can$100 million Marquee Tourism Events Program fund.[7][8][9]
2020, 2021 and 2022 saw drive-thru Ribfests due to the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions.
Economic impact
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In 2003, an economic study was conducted on "Canada's Largest Ribfest." It found that almost 50% of visitors to the Ribfest come from outside Burlington. About 100% of those who came to the Ribfest would recommend it to out-of-town friends and/or relatives. About 69% said they would attend in 2007. About $1.8 million is being spent in the region by consumers.[10]
Charitable fundraising
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The Ribfest's funds are split to local organizations, business, and hospitals.
This is some of them:
- Scouts Canada
- Rotary Youth Leadership Awards
- Scholarships and Bursaries
- Burlington Teen Tour Band
- Burlington Art Centre
- Salvation Army
- The Carpenter Hospice
- Rotary Music festival
- Burlington International Games
- Partnership West Food Bank
- Joseph Brant Hospital
- Children's Assessment & Treatment Centre
- Habitat for Humanity
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Burlington est un bijou à découvrir dans le Centre-Sud Archived 2011-07-06 at the Wayback Machine." Bonjour Ontario. May 19, 2010.
- ^ "Festivals and federal funds. National Post. May 11, 2010
- ^ "A finger-lickin' Ribfest ; Ribbing teams from U.S. and Canada compete on Ontario's summer festival circuit". Toronto Star. Toronto, Ontario. Sep 5, 2001
- ^ Burman, John "Burlington expects 150,000 to chow down at RibFest." The Spectator - Hamilton, Ont. Aug 31, 2004.
- ^ Burlington Ribfest Identity Redevelopment
- ^ Canadian stimulus package funding gigantic ribfest?!. Weightymatters.ca May 18, 2010
- ^ a b Fricker, Peter. "Federal funding program has soft spot for rodeos." Vancouver Sun. May 25, 2010
- ^ "Contributions et bénéficiaires (2010) Archived 2010-06-16 at the Wayback Machine." Industrie Canada.
- ^ Chouinard, Marie-Andrée. "Financement des festivals - La boîte à surprises." Le Devoir. 15 May 2010
- ^ 2009 Sponsorship & Advertising Program Archived 2010-09-18 at the Wayback Machine. CanadasLargestRibfest.com.