It seems like every other day in America is arbitrarily marked as a “National Day” for something or other (dogs, best friends, hugs, etc.). But when it comes to the day designated specifically to doughnuts, we definitely took notice.

Amazingly, this special day wasn’t shamelessly cooked up by the doughnut industry to lure people into shops under the veil of getting a free pastry. National Doughnut Day has its origins in World War I, when Salvation Army volunteers fried dough in helmets to feed hungry soldiers. The doughnuts were popular with troops, and once the war was over, the government supported veterans who wanted to open their own shops. In 1938, the Chicago Salvation Army launched National Doughnut Day as a fundraiser event to help citizen during the Great Depression, and it has been a fixture of American culture ever since. 

This year’s National Doughnut Day took a competitive twist, as MERRY JANE News attended the World Doughnut Eating Contest in Los Angeles to catch champion Joey Chestnut and others face off in a doughnut eating contest.

Check out the video above to see what went down, as well as what participants think of mixing doughnuts with our other favorite consumable—marijuana.