State Chile Taste Off coming on Saturday

The Great Chile New Mexico Taste Off will be held this Saturday, Oct.7 at the Socorro Rodeo & Sports Complex for its fifth year.

The free event will kick off with a parade featuring New Mexico chile growers, starting at Sedillo Park to the Rodeo Complex on Saturday morning at 9 a.m. The gates open at 10 a.m. followed by chile judging at noon.Travis Day, Executive Director of the New Mexico Chile Association, said the event will feature food vendors, chile growers, chile roasters, live music, beer and wine. Judging will include best red, best green and best county based on cumulative points. “It gives the growers a fun competition, it’s solely based on the chile, there is no seasoning or flavoring, just fresh product that is roasted, peeled and chopped.” Day said.According to Day, there is often misbranding of chile; the product is grown outside the state but labeled as if it is from New Mexico for marketing reasons.“The goal of the event is to promote our New Mexico Certified Chile Program, all the growers who are attending are New Mexico certified.” Day said.The certification requires audits that verifies that the chile products come from New Mexico.“We are protecting the folks here in New Mexico, and we do that with the New Mexico Certified Chile Program, anyone who uses that trademark,” Day said. “It gives the consumers the confidence that the chile that they are buying is the real McCoy.”For more information on the event, please visit: www.nmchiletasteoff.com