Farm Animals to Debut in their First-Ever Competitive Eating Contest

This weekend, a unique competition will take place involving five goats vying for the title of top weed-eater. This marks the first-ever competitive eating event for goats, transforming from the traditional annual “Running of the Goats” in Riverside Park, where these animals help clear invasive plants like mugwort and poison ivy.

Designed to celebrate the start of the grazing season, the event will feature each goat—Romeo, Mallomar, Butterball, Kash, and Rufus—competing to consume pre-prepared bundles of invasive plants within five minutes. The goats are enthusiastically preparing for the challenge, with some showing off their strong jaws, although much of the outcome remains unpredictable due to their independent nature.

The contest will be hosted by George Shea, renowned emcee of the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest, and each goat will have trainers and counters, similar to Joey Chestnut’s setup when he recently claimed victory by eating 70.5 hot dogs.

Goats sitting in their enclosure — This Saturday’s event will be the first competition between goats to determine the best weed eater in Riverside Park.

Birnbaum, CEO of the Riverside Park Conservancy, explained that the event was conceived as a fun way to welcome the goats for the summer, which will see them working in the park for the sixth year to manage invasive species.

Goats eating invasive species — The goats will be given bundles of mugwort, an invasive plant, to eat during the contest. They are considered effective natural weed control agents.

The event will be hosted by George Shea and the goats will be judged on their speed and efficiency. The team remains uncertain about who will win, but speculation hints at Kash, a newcomer, possibly having a stronger jaw than the others. Birnbaum notes that since goats are resistant to commands, the outcome is anyone’s guess.

Goats eating weeds — Birnbaum suggests that the competition may even set a world record for weed consumption—though which goat will do that remains a mystery.

After the contest, the goats will continue grazing in Riverside Park’s two-acre invasive species removal zone for the summer, where they’ve sometimes finished their work early due to their efficiency.