Sudbury kids bake 1,200-pound Nanaimo bar for Canada Day fundraiser

Five years after setting a Guinness record with a 530-pound Nanaimo bar, a group of kids have upped the ante with a 1,200-pound version. Madison Marier reports.

Five kids from the Greater Sudbury community of Levack are celebrating Canada Day by baking what they say is the world’s largest Nanaimo bar – weighing in at 1,200 pounds – five years after their family first set the Guinness World Record for the dessert.

A Guinness World Record

In 2020, the Kurtis and McCue families of the Northwest Fudge Factory created a 530-pound Nanaimo bar, earning official recognition from Guinness. Now, the group – with an average age of 12 – has more than doubled that effort, though they do not plan to submit this attempt to Guinness, opting instead to give others a chance to break their original record.

“Five years ago, we made a 530-pound Nanaimo bar and we went through Guinness and we got the official world record,” said Ella and Austin Kurtis, two of the young bakers.

“This year, five years later, we decided to do a 1,200-pound Nanaimo bar just to celebrate Canada Day.”

The massive dessert took one full day to bake and two weeks to plan.

“It makes me feel really good because we’re doing it again,” Austin said.

“Five years ago, I didn’t really remember anything, so I got to remake it and double it.”

Giving back

The project also serves as a fundraiser for three youth-focused charities: the Northern Ontario Families of Children with Cancer (NOFCC), Youth Offering Youth Opportunities (YOYO), and the Onaping Falls Legion.

“I really think that youth can make big differences, like five kids making a 1,200-pounder to give back to youth,” said Ella Kurtis.

“That’s so inspirational. It’s just a really great opportunity that gives back.”

Another recent big bar attempt

While the Levack group holds the official Guinness record, another large Nanaimo bar was created in May by Vancouver Island University in Nanaimo, B.C. That bar stretched about 70 feet long, weighed roughly 1,100 pounds, and served 3,500 pieces. However, it was not certified by Guinness, instead relying on validation from the Baking Association of Canada and the Culinary Federation of Canada.

“It’s not a Guinness record, and it doesn’t meet the same standards of a Guinness record,” representatives of the Northwest Fudge Factory told CTV News at the time.

‘Put your mind to something, you can do almost anything’

The Sudbury team remains proud of their accomplishment.

“It just shows how much if five kids put their mind to something, you could do almost anything,” said Rylee and Trent McCue, two other bakers involved.

When asked if they plan to attempt another world-record food item, the answer from the children was simple: “Probably not.”

The 1,200-pound Nanaimo bar was unveiled on June 30 with pieces to be sold on Canada Day at Science North, with proceeds supporting their chosen charities.

With files from CTV News Vancouver