The California State Fair returned in full force this summer for the first time in three years, but participating farmers are still feeling the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The State Fair offers livestock shows and competitions throughout its 17-day run, showcasing animals that range from guinea pigs to 2,000-pound cattle. The livestock available for view rotate based on the fair’s show schedule, with several groups of animals typically on display in the Livestock Pavilion on any given day.
For returning farmers, the fair typically means reuniting with the same cohort of family farmers year over year. Goat farmer Dylan Howell compared the social scene among farmers to the 2000 mockumentary “Best in Show,” adding that while everyone generally gets along well, “occasionally you get those crazy goat moms.”
“We all know each other,” Howell said. “Both of our daughters grew up showing in 4-H. They’ve grown up, and we’re still here. It’s something to look forward to in the summers.”
But this year, as the fair returns from the COVID-19 pandemic, several returning farmers told the Bee that many faces are missing.
Natalie Reis, 35, has been showing cattle at the fair since she was five years old, and said that even some of the families who have been coming to the fair for as long as she has did not return after the pandemic.
“There’s nobody here,” Reis said. “I think it’s not just COVID, it’s everything else going on. A lot of people are not going to sell cows because of the drought, and you can’t buy hay because it’s so expensive because of fuel. It’s just a combination of everything.”
Goat farmer Jean Davis noticed a similar phenomenon, pointing to stalls of the barn that have been filled with goats in past years and now stand empty, as fewer farmers return. Where there used to be a row of Nigerian Dwarf goat farmers, Davis said, there are now only five.
The absence of in-person fairs over the COVID-19 pandemic has also taken its toll on returning farmers. Cattle farmer Linda Hill said cows that typically become exposed to strangers during a circuit of county fairs are now coming into the State Fair without experience being around people.
“There’s been very little going on,” Hill said. “Some of the (cattle shows) were able to go along with COVID but a lot of them had to drop off because all the fairgrounds were closed down. It’s just been kind of COVID-chaotic.”
If the State Fair hopes to return the number of participating farmers to pre-pandemic levels, Reis said, it must prioritize making the experience “exhibitor-friendly.”
Exhibitors at the fair receive two complimentary tickets, Reis said, but because she brings four cows, she has to pay out of pocket for the staff she brings to help take care of them and the costs of showing livestock adds up.
“That’s why the barn is empty,” Reis said. “If we’re going to spend $5,000 dollars between the hotel and the fuel and all that to go to a show, I’m going to choose the ones that they want me to be at.”
