Armed with sculpting tools and blocks of scrapple, a fresh crop of contestants gathered at Reading Terminal Market on Thursday morning to carve their way into the market's unofficial fall tradition. The Scrapple Sculpting Contest kicked off the lead-up to Saturday's Scrapple & Apple Festival, where the sculptures will go on display for the public to admire, and vote on, before the weekend is through.
According to Reading Terminal Market, contestants needed to arrive no later than 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, and the event was open to both accomplished artists and total beginners, so long as they were at least 18 years old. There was no entry fee or purchase required to compete. On the question of how much raw material each sculptor had to work with, the record is mixed: Reading Terminal Market's official event listing states that the market supplied a five-pound block of scrapple and sculpting tools to each contestant, while Metro Philadelphia reported contestants worked with six-pound blocks and had 90 minutes to build a Reading Terminal Market-themed piece.
Two Chances to Win, Two Different Judges
Per the market's event page, the contest produces two separate winners this year: one chosen by a local sculptor judging the work on Thursday, and a second selected by popular public vote after Saturday's festival wraps up. Both winners receive the same prize package, a scrapple trophy, a Reading Terminal Market swag bag, and a $100 market gift card, and every contestant walks away with a free Scrapple & Apple Festival T-shirt regardless of outcome.
The sculptures themselves won't disappear after Thursday. Reading Terminal Market says the pieces will be displayed throughout the festival, and as PhillyVoice notes, attendees can cast their own vote for a favorite among the carved works before the public winner is announced.
A Tradition With Scrapple Roots Going Back Nearly Two Decades
This isn't the market's first brush with scrapple-themed celebration. The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that Reading Terminal Market ran an annual Scrapplefest from 2007 through 2013, a precursor to the current sculpting contest and festival pairing. In the inaugural modern sculpting contest, the Inquirer reported that ten contestants from across the region spent 90 minutes chiseling five-pound blocks, with Jake Heller taking the top prize for a chicken vase featuring a removable head and a hollow body holding a scrapple egg.
Last year's second annual contest drew 12 contestants working with five-pound blocks over 90 minutes, according to the Inquirer, though Billy Penn reported the window as 100 minutes. Patrick Moser won that 2025 competition with a sculpture of the Eagles' Tush Push he dubbed the “Mush Push,” earning a pig trophy named “Scrappy” and a $100 market gift card. This year, Metro Philadelphia reports that Market Merch is collaborating with Moser, who also works as a tattoo artist, on festival-themed merchandise.
Saturday's Festival Brings the Full Spread
Saturday's Scrapple & Apple Festival runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 1136 Arch St. and is free to enter, with food and drink purchases paid separately, as PhillyVoice reports. Reading Terminal Market says its merchants are rolling out scrapple-inspired menu items exclusive to the event, and Metro Philadelphia lists dishes including scrapple fries with homemade apple butter and scrapple-and-apple fried lumpia, alongside sweeter options like apple crisp banana pudding, apple pie churro sundaes, and caramel apple Pop-Tarts.
Beyond the food, PhillyVoice reports the Saturday event will include cooking demonstrations, local vendors, live entertainment, and activities for children. Edible Philly describes the Scrapple and Apple Festival as an annual celebration at the market, and as Metro Philadelphia notes, the market's leadership said they were glad to bring back both the festival and the sculpting contest for another year of fall fun. The event marks the latest chapter in a scrapple-celebrating tradition that NBC10 Philadelphia also covered as the contest returned to the market this week.
