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On June 4, the Indiana State Fair Commission and the Indiana State Fair Board announced a modified State Fair 4-H Livestock Show and 4-H Project Showcase to be held on the Indiana State Fairgrounds in August. The carnival, vendors and special events, such as Taste from Indiana Farms, will not take place at this year’s traditional state fair. This decision was driven by the impact of COVID-19.

“Safety is our No. 1 priority. We spent months working through options that would allow us to host the fair,” said Cindy Hoye, executive director of the Indiana State Fair Commission. “Agriculture and youth are the foundation of our mission and the heartbeat of the Indiana State Fair, so we are determined and proud to honor our 4-H members with a version of that state fair experience that allows Indiana’s youth to be recognized for their dedication and hard work.”

“We are grateful for the long partnership with Indiana Farm Bureau, who helps make the iconic event possible every summer,” Hoye said. “To our beloved fans, staff, sponsors, exhibitors, 4-H and FFA members, vendors, volunteers and entertainers – we look forward to being back at full strength in August 2021."

In place of the traditional state fair, there will be an Indiana State Fair 4-H Livestock Competition and 4-H Project Showcase. This will allow 4-H’ers the opportunity to have their projects celebrated at a modified fair.

For many years, Indiana Farm Bureau has hosted thousands of fairgoers in the Farm Bureau Building during the state fair. However, in early 2020, INFB made a strategic decision to move away from having an active presence in the building and instead shifted its attention for this year’s state fair to a more strategic focus on supporting youth in agriculture. INFB will invest in youth livestock activities during the fair, including the exhibitor experience, all livestock showmanship competitions and the Supreme Drive.

“When we made this decision, we were under the impression that there would be a traditional Indiana State Fair,” said Randy Kron, INFB president. “While that is not possible this year, we are happy to have the opportunity to support the youth livestock showmen and all of the hard work they have put into their projects this year.”

INFB will support the youth livestock showmanship competitions by providing awards to top-level showmanship winners throughout the show as well as show boxes to the grand champions of the Supreme Drive to be held on Aug. 16.

The Indiana State Fair 4-H Livestock Competition and 4-H Project Showcase will take place Aug. 7 through Sept. 5 at the Indiana State Fairgrounds & Event Center in Indianapolis. At the time of this article, it is not known if spectators will be allowed into the event.

For more information on the modified Indiana State Fair 4-H Livestock Competition and 4-H Project Showcase, visit www.indianastatefair.com.