8 Foods Speed Eaten in 30 Seconds, Setting Guinness Records
Competitive eating has been around for a while, with the first recording of Nathan’s Famous hot dog eating contest being held in 1972. Since then, people around the world have set records for eating copious amounts of food in short time frames.
Among the most impressive speed eaters are those who eat unfathomable amounts of food in a mere 30 seconds. Many have set Guinness World Records.
No matter how much you love the foods on this list, we’re pretty sure you’ll agree that these folks have eaten them in gut-wrenching amounts.
1: By the Gallon
German-born André Ortolf takes “ice cream lover” to a whole new level. On a fall day in September 2023 in Italy, he downed 1 pound 4 ounces of ice cream in…wait for it…30 seconds.
Just the thought of it gives us a brain freeze. Our only question is can he do the same with gelato?
2: Sugar Rush
Ortolf isn’t a stranger to setting Guinness World Records. About five months after eating the most ice cream in 30 seconds, he set another record: Eating the most tiramisu in 30 seconds. He downed a massive 1.12 pounds of tiramisu in that timeframe.
While we’re at it, André Ortolf also has set records for the most shrimp eaten in three minutes and the most jelly (Jell-O) eaten with chopsticks in 30 seconds.
Now, let’s give other people the spotlight.
3: Loving Jell-O
Why eat Jell-O with chopsticks when you can eat it with a fork? In February 2023, Miki Sudo set the Guinness World Record for the most amount of jelly (Jell-O) eaten with a fork in 30 seconds.
Sudo ate 2.86 pounds of jelly in half a minute. That’s a scenario fit for sugar-loving kids.
4: Raw Is Trending
Imagine eating nine scrambled eggs in 30 seconds. If you’re like us, that doesn’t sound appetizing. Now, imagine cracking and eating nine raw eggs in that same timeframe.
That’s exactly what Arpit Lall did in September 2018. It wasn’t the first time someone attempted cracking and eating an unfathomable amount of eggs in 30 seconds; Lall beat the previous record by two eggs.
5: For the Soul
Okay, we gave other Guinness Record-breakers the spotlight. Now, we circle back to André Ortolf, who’s clearly carved out a niche in the 30-second food-eating realm.
In November 2017, Ortolf beat the record for the most amount of soup eaten in 30 seconds — 1.06 pounds. Guinness didn’t provide details on what kind of soup he ate nor how hot it was, and we remain curious about both.
6: Potato Lovin’
You’ll be hard-pressed to find an American who doesn’t love some mashed potatoes. But can you imagine eating 1.3 pounds of them in a day, let alone 30 seconds?
Ortolf was at it again, setting the Guinness Record for the most mashed potatoes eaten in 30 seconds. On the June 2016 day when he did so, he used a commercially available instant product. Is it possible he could do the same with homemade mashed potatoes?
7: Italian Heartland
André Ortolf clearly has no qualms about eating carbs, for in April 2020, he achieved another Guinness feat: Eating the most amount of lasagna in 30 seconds.
So, what does it take to beat Ortolf’s record? You’d need to eat more than 0.9 pounds of lasagna in 30 seconds.
8: Fruit, Please
In August 2018, André stepped away from fruit and processed sugary foods to eat something healthier: Watermelon. That said, we’re not sure what doctors would think of eating 1.49 pounds of watermelon in a day, let alone in 30 seconds.
Ortolf was already known for setting food-related Guinness records at the time, and he ate the watermelon at a kid’s camp to demonstrate how he breaks records.
About André
André Ortolf is a self-proclaimed speed eater. His Instagram page claims that he holds the most Guinness Records in Germany and is the youngest person in the world with 100 records.
Speed eating, which also goes by competitive eating, isn’t a new concept. Wikipedia even goes so far as to call it a “sport” where people try to beat each other at eating large amounts of food, typically within a short timeframe.
Top Speed Eaters
According to Major League Eating, an organization that oversees professional competitive eating events, Joey Chestnut is the best competitive eater in the world.
Chestnut holds many impressive titles, including 55 World Records across 55 disciplines, which is a World Record of World Records. One of the records he’s most famous for is eating 76 Nathan’s Famous hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes.
83 Pizza Slices
Geoffrey Esper is the second-best competitive eater in the world, according to Major League Eating. Esper is notorious for eating 83 slices of John’s Incredible Pizza in 10 minutes. But it doesn’t end there.
Geoffrey also holds records for eating 281 Hooters wings in 10 minutes and eating 21 pounds of strawberry shortcake in eight minutes. Stomachache, anyone?
Health Consequences
As amazing as it is to read about the copious amounts of foods speed eaters consume, there can be a dark side to competitive eating. Researchers believe speed eaters can intake unfathomable amounts of food because their stomachs expand to form a massive flaccid sac. In layperson’s terms, the speed eater’s stomach has the capacity to accommodate more food than your everyday American.
Experts warn that competitive speed eating can be a self-destructive form of behavior. Morbid obesity, profound gastroparesis, intractable nausea, and vomiting are some of the issues that can come from it.
We don’t know about you, but we’d rather watch speed eating than participate in it.
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