Brady Long of Wadsworth defeated 22 competitors from across the nation to claim a grand prize of $10,000 at the National Grocers Association (NGA) Best Bagger Championship in Las Vegas.
Long, 23 and a University of Akron student majoring in accounting, won the 2016 Best Bagger Contest in Ohio and works at the Medina Forest Meadows Buehler’s grocery store.
The National Grocers Association has organized the nationwide competition since 1987. Contestants are judged by speed, “proper bag-building technique,” weight distribution, as well as “style, attitude and appearance,” Buehler’s said.
The competition was held Monday during the NGA Show at the Mirage Hotel and Casino.
Buehler’s has 13 supermarkets, including stores in Wooster, Orrville, Wadsworth, Medina, Jackson Township, Green and Massillon.
Send local food news to Katie Byard at 330-996-3781 or kbyard@thebeaconjournal.com. You can follow her @KatieByardABJ on Twitter or on Facebook at www.facebook.com and read the Akron Dish blog at www.ohio.com/food.