Victoria has cemented its status as Australia’s pie capital, with a Melbourne bakery taking out the coveted title of Australia’s greatest meat pie at this year’s Official Great Aussie Pie Competition.
Buddy Bakery, in Melbourne’s western suburb of Melton, claimed the top prize with a chunky mince pie after four days of judging—beating out thousands of entries from across the country.
The win came at the 37th annual competition, held at Fine Food Australia at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre this week, where bakers—and, for the first time, butchers—hand-delivered or flew their creations in for judging.
More than 1,800 pies entered the competition
The 2026 competition attracted approximately 1,821 entries from more than 250 bakeries, with demand so high that entries had to close early for the first time in the competition’s history.
A team of expert judges spent four days tasting, examining and ranking pies, sausage rolls and pasties across a huge range of categories.
Head Judge Mike French, who has overseen the competition for more than three decades, led the judging panel, which included the largest number of female judges in the competition’s history.
The entries ranged from traditional meat pies to more unexpected creations, including a seafood paella pie. For Australia’s favourite bakery staple, the judges reached a general consensus: Buddy Bakery’s pie was the one to beat.
Victoria takes the meat pie crown
Buddy Bakery’s chunky mince pie secured the title of Australia’s greatest meat pie, bringing the national spotlight to Melbourne’s west.
But let’s not leave all the glory to Victoria. Orange Spot Bakery in Glenelg, South Australia, took out the Overall Winner title after winning first place in both the Meat Pastie and Sausage Roll categories.
So while Victoria can claim the country’s best meat pie, South Australia is heading home with the competition’s biggest overall bragging rights.
Winning a pie competition can mean big business
Since launching in 1989, the Official Great Aussie Pie Competition has become one of the baking industry’s biggest annual showcases—and winning can translate into real foot traffic.
Past winners have reported customers travelling for hours and lining up outside bakeries to try their award-winning creations, with some businesses working overtime for months to keep up.
The competition also aims to push bakers—and now butchers—to sharpen their craft, experiment with new products and keep improving in an increasingly competitive industry.
For Buddy Bakery, the real prize is knowing they’ve made Australia’s best meat pie. And frankly, that feels like a pretty good reason to make the trip west.
The full list of 2026 winners is available through the Official Great Aussie Pie Competition.
