17 Incomprehensible Food-Related Guinness World Records
Could you finish a burrito in seconds or eat a Big Mac every day for life? Some people have, and they’ve earned Guinness World Records for their accomplishments.
From the largest serving of pancakes to the longest noodle to the biggest bubble gum bubble, Guinness World Record holders have achieved impressive feats. Some records have stood the test of time, while others have occurred more recently.
These incomprehensible food-related records come directly from the Guinness World Records website. Read through the list and get inspired to go after your own world record.
1: Scream for Ice Cream
Can you say ice cream headache? In 2023, Andre Ortolf of Germany set a Guinness World Record for eating the most ice cream in 30 seconds.
Ortolf toppled the former record by eating 568 grams of ice cream. That’s equivalent to 1 pound 4 ounces.
2: Stack of Pancakes
In 2021, the Midwestern grocery store chain Hy-Vee broke the record for the largest serving of pancakes. By the end of the record-breaking event, chefs had made 13,000 pancakes.
For seven hours, 18 chefs kept cooking to add more pancakes to the stack, even working through a major thunderstorm. Hy-Vee donated the pancakes to a regional food bank.
3: Grape Stomping
Lucy Ricardo has nothing on Martina Servaty, who set the Guinness World Record for extracting juice from grapes through treading. Grape treading, also known as grape stomping, involves crushing grapes with one’s feet to release the juice for wine making.
Servaty beat the previous record by extracting 20.3 liters, or 4.47 gallons, of juice. The record occurred in Cologne, Germany, in 2008.
4: Heaviest Carrot
If you have trouble getting the carrots in your garden to sprout, take a tip from this record-holder. Christopher Qualley achieved the record for the heaviest carrot, which weighed in at 22.44 pounds.
Qualley grew the carrot in Otsego, Minnesota. Guinness World Records verified its size in September 2017.
5: Medium Hamburgers Consumed
Takeru Kobayashi of Japan holds the record for the most medium hamburgers consumed in three minutes. Kobayashi ate 12 hamburgers while on the set of “Lo Show dei Record” in Italy in July 2014.
Each hamburger patty weighed 4 ounces, and the buns weighed 50 grams each. He got to add one permitted condiment and chose mayonnaise.
6: Lifetime of Big Macs
If you want to break the record for the most Big Macs eaten during a lifetime, you’d better get started. Donald Gorske of Wisconsin currently holds this record after eating 34,128 Big Macs in his lifetime.
Gorske says one secret to his success was keeping Big Macs in the freezer in case McDonald’s closed during a blizzard. He also says his high metabolism and relatively good health allowed him to eat the burgers without gaining too much weight.
7: Jar of Peanut Butter
Some people enjoy eating peanut butter straight from the jar, but Andre Ortolf takes this guilty pleasure to a new level. He holds the record for eating the most peanut butter in one minute.
In November 2017, Ortolf consumed 378 grams of peanut butter to break the record. For comparison, a 16-ounce jar of Jif Creamy Peanut Butter is 454 grams.
8: PB&J Sandwiches
While good on its own, peanut butter pairs perfectly with jelly. The record for eating the most peanut butter-and-jelly sandwiches belongs to Patrick Bertoletti.
Bertoletti ate six sandwiches in one minute at Sierra Studios in Illinois. The record has stood strong since January 2012.
9: Fastest Burrito Eating
In 30 seconds, you might check your email or text a friend. Competitive eater Miki Sudo can eat a burrito in the same time frame.
In October 2022, Sudo ate a burrito in 31.47 seconds. She achieved the record in Tampa, Florida.
10: Most Hot Dogs
Talk about a power couple. On the same day Sudo set a record for fastest burrito eating, her husband, competitive eater Nicholas Wehry, had his own accomplishment.
Wehry set the record for the most hot dogs consumed in three minutes. He ate 12 hot dogs to beat the previous record.
11: Hot Dog Contest
Joey Chestnut has become a fan favorite at the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest, held on July 4 each year. Chestnut holds the record for the most hot dogs eaten during this contest with 76.
In 2021, Chestnut beat his own record by eating one more hot dog than the year before. He ate all 76 hot dogs in 10 minutes. He also set another world record by winning the contest for the 14th time.
12: Square Feet of Pizza
You need to measure the largest pizza in square footage. In 2023, YouTuber Airrack created the largest pizza, which measured 13,957.77 square feet.
To make the pizza, Airrack used over 13,000 pounds of dough and nearly 5,000 pounds of marinara sauce. For toppings, there were 8,800 pounds of cheese and over 630,000 slices of pepperoni.
13: Catching Marshmallows
Have you ever tried to catch a marshmallow in your mouth? David Rush and Jonathan Hannon make it look easy. They set the record for the most marshmallows caught by mouth in one minute.
The duo achieved the record with 58 marshmallows in Boise, Idaho, in October 2021. By himself, Rush has earned over 200 Guinness World Record titles.
14: Longest Noodle
If you’ve ever been caught slurping spaghetti, you may have wondered if you’ve broken the record for the longest noodle. It’s highly unlikely, however, since this record belongs to Xiangnian Food Co. in China.
The company set the record with a noodle that measured slightly over 10,119 feet. The noodle has continued to hold the record since October 2017.
15: Fastest Pasta Eater
Speed eating is an art that Leah Shutkever has mastered. She currently holds the Guinness World Record for the fastest time to eat a bowl of pasta.
Shutkever finished the bowl in 17.03 seconds in August 2023. Not surprisingly, she also holds other records related to speed eating.
16: Soda Guzzling
On hot days, people might reach for soda to quench their thirst. But they probably don’t chug their drinks like Eric Booker, who set the record for the fastest time to drink two liters of soda.
Booker achieved the feat in 18.45 seconds in May 2021. As a competitive eater, Booker says it was his dream to hold a Guinness World Record.
17: Biggest Bubble Gum Bubble
For two decades, Chad Fell has retained the title of the biggest bubble gum bubble. In April 2004, Fell blew a bubble measuring 20 inches in diameter without using his hands.
To achieve the record, Fell says he used three pieces of Dubble Bubble gum. He achieved the record at a high school in Alabama.
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