Got to Be NC Festival slated for June 5-8 in Raleigh

A four-day festival celebrating North Carolina’s agricultural bounty will take place June 5-8 at the State Fairgrounds in Raleigh.

The Got to Be NC Festival will feature a food trade show, antique tractors, draft horse and antique tractor pulls, the official state barbecue cooking championship, carnival rides, a bluegrass band competition and live performances of country, bluegrass and beach music.

Festival hours will be 3 p.m.-midnight Thursday and Friday, and 10 a.m.-midnight Saturday and Sunday. Admission is free. Tickets to events in the Sam Rand Grandstand will be $5.

“We’re excited to show off agriculture in North Carolina with dozens of N.C. food companies sampling and offering delicious foods for sale,” said Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler. “In addition, this could be the largest gathering of antique farm equipment in North Carolina, based on the response we’ve gotten. Mix in the N.C. Barbecue Championship and great music, and it’s going to be a real down-home celebration of our agricultural heritage.”

Teams from across North Carolina will compete in the 2008 N.C. State Barbecue Cooking Championship on Friday and Saturday. It is sponsored by the N.C. Pork Council.

The bluegrass band competition will be in Heritage Circle Saturday from noon to 5 p.m. Bluegrass music by Sweet Potato Pie will be featured daily.

Each night, the Sam Rand Grandstand will host entertainment. Greenville’s Super Grit Cowboy Band kicks off the series Thursday. The Coastline Band of Charlotte brings beach music on Saturday, and Steep Canyon Rangers from Asheville plays bluegrass on Sunday. All concerts begin at 9 p.m. A draft horse and mule pull will take place Friday from 6 to 9 p.m.

Festival sponsors include Kids’ Green Earth, Food Lion, Touchstone Energy, Kerr Drug, Quality Equipment LLC and the Golden LEAF Foundation.

For more information, log on to www.ncagfest.com.