See The Massive Pumpkin That Just Set A New Record
A 2,480-pound pumpkin just won the New England Giant Pumpkin Weigh-Off, setting a new record.
As Halloween approaches, farmers have been showcasing their pumpkin-growing prowess in contests across the country. During the 38th annual All New England Giant Pumpkin Weigh-Off at the Topsfield Fair in Massachusetts, Jamie Graham set a new record for the heaviest squash with his 2,480-pound entry. The Tyngsborough native bested the previous record of 2,294.5 pounds with his giant vegetable which he named Bear Swipe.
Bear Swipe will be on display at the fair until October 10th. Speaking about his win on social media, Graham said his squash is currently the fourth largest pumpkin in the world this year, and the 11th biggest undamaged one ever grown. “It was an amazing surreal intense experience,” he wrote on Instagram via Food&Wine. Graham took home an $8,500 cash prize for winning the Great Pumpkin Weigh-Off which has been held at the Topsfield Fair since 1984.
Meanwhile, a 2,554-pound pumpkin originating in New York set a new North American record for the heaviest squash ever grown. The record-breaking feat took place at the Great Pumpkin Farm which is located less than 20 miles east of Buffalo. Scott Andrusz of nearby Williamsville grew the vegetable, hoping to break the state record, of 2,517 pounds.
The previous U.S. pumpkin record belonged to a New Hampshire resident who grew a 2,528-pound pumpkin in 2018, The Boston Globe reports. Andrusz’s winning squash will now be on display at the fall festival through October 16th. The farmer reportedly had a giant pumpkin ready to compete for a record last year. But it cracked just before the harvest, which disqualifies it from the contest for obvious reasons.
To get his winning pumpkin to fruition, Andrusz stayed up nights protecting it from raccoons and other animals set on nibbling or damaging it. “All the animals and critters seem to love this pumpkin more than anything in the world,” he told the Gothamist. “They all want to eat on it. And I have cats come and try to scratch it, they think it’s a big couch,” he explained.
Andrusz also needed the help of relatives to tend to the pumpkin. But those high levels of intense care took up so much time that the farmer was forced to neglect his other hobbies, like fishing. However, after the amazing win, it was all worth it. “It’s just so incredible and the culmination of a lot of hard effort for me and my sons,” he told the publication. “I love standing next to them to see them all. They’re just so amazing to me.”
While the Williamsville resident now holds the United States record, his squash fell just short of the world record. That honor belongs to Stefano Cutrupi in the Italian region of Tuscany, who grew a 2,703-pound pumpkin. Cutrupi presented his entry at the Campionato Della Zuccone Festival in September 2021. That scale-smasher is the current Guinness World Record-holder for the World’s Heaviest Pumpkin.
Speaking about his record-breaking pumpkin, Cutrupi told Guinness there were good moments but he also had to swallow some bitter pills. “All the time dedicated to cultivation, to the search for new ideas, the time spent comparing myself with other growers, my sacrifices, and the sacrifices of those closest to me took their toll,” he explained. But his efforts were not for nothing since he still holds the record over a year later.
