Plenty of people pack groceries for a living. On Saturday, Oct. 17, a few of them did it in front of judges at Mall of America. The Minnesota Grocers Association held its 38th annual statewide Best Bagger Contest there, with contestants from across the state competing for the title of Minnesota's Best Bagger.
There were 12 contestants, and judges scored them on speed, style, attitude, proper bag-building technique and how evenly the weight was split between bags. Every contestant packed reusable bags. The baggers worked for Kowalski's Market, Lunds & Byerlys, Chris' Food Center, Coborn's, Mackenthun's Fine Foods and Fareway Meat & Grocery.
Dylan Mackenthun of Mackenthun's Fine Foods in Waconia won. His prize is $600, a trophy and a trip to Las Vegas, where he'll represent Minnesota at the National Grocers Association Best Bagger Championship in February. He also won the Speed award after filling his 2 bags in 48.54 seconds.
Jazmine Rosa of Lunds & Byerlys in St. Cloud came in 2nd. Izak Johnson of Kowalski's Market in Edina, an Edina resident, took 3rd and won a trophy and $200. The Balance award also went to the Waconia store: Ethan Olson, Mackenthun's teammate, packed 2 bags whose weights differed by just 0.03 ounces. That's about the weight of a paper clip, and it's tighter than most of us manage with a gallon of milk and a carton of eggs.
The Minnesota Grocers Association has been around for more than 125 years. The group said it represents more than 300 members, who run nearly 1,300 locations and employ over 150,000 people in the state. Its national counterpart runs the championship Mackenthun is headed to, which pits state winners against each other.
