Everyone can find something to enjoy at the county fair! The midway with its rides and games. The food trucks with all the funnel cakes and
other yummy things you can’t find anywhere else. The livestock barns are a great place to see young farmers and ranchers show off their livestock, the 4H club is always there showing their poultry and animals, and if you travel on over to the home economics building you can find all the offerings from other homesteads and lovers of home skills. Quilts, produce, artwork, baking, and my personal favorite, the canned goods section! If you haven’t ever entered anything you make into a fair, you are missing out!
Here are a few reasons you should enter into the fair next year:
- It’s FUN! I love seeing my canned items (or dehydrated) on the shelf with their ribbons. It’s a small reward for all that work I did.
- Adding your goods to the exhibit adds entries to your local fair and helps build community interest.
- It’s a learning opportunity to see comments from the judges on how to make your entries better next year.
- Depending on the entry and the fair rules, your jar will more than likely be unharmed and unopened. You don’t lose anything by entering!
Here are a few tips for great entries:
- Use appropriate canning techniques for the best product
- Start with peak produce (the better the item, the better it looks when processed)
- Use clean, new, and rust-free jars, lids, and rings.
- Check your headspace! Yes, it matters!
- Be sure and read the entry rules before packing up your goods to take out to the fair.
Overall, don’t be afraid to try! You can’t really lose anything and best-case scenario you come home with some ribbons, good information, and usually a little money! You aren’t going to get rich doing this, but you might treat yourself to a funnel cake before the fairgrounds close.
Contributor: Samantha Dooley