Country & State Fair Culinary Arts Competitions

Hi,

I have competed at the county fair and state fair levels in the culinary arts department. At the county fair level, I've received several champion, grand champion and a best of show trophy. At the state level, I have received a few first prizes and champion ribbons. I live about 225 miles from the state fair, so my participation has never been as ambitious as my county fair activities 20 miles away.

My participation in these competitions began when a friend submitted a handmade quilt, which I came to admire and support her efforts. I checked out the culinary arts, where I kept checking winners against what I do and did the classic, "I can do that!" The first year of competing and the feedback by the judges gave me a good sense of what the judges were looking for. My second year, I received several champion ribbons and the third year my grand champion ribbon. After that, I lost steam because how can you best yourself after that?

To explain the ribbon system: There are competition classes, for instance jam. Within that class you may have grape, strawberry and cherry jam competitions. Initially, all the grape jams are compared to each other, where jams will be awarded 1st, 2nd or 3rd place ribbons. The first prize jams of grape, strawberry and cherry will be compared and a champion derived. A grand champion will be derived from the champions of every culinary arts class, i.e. jelly, jams, cake, cookies, pies, ect. Best of show trophy almost always goes to the Grand Champion, though this is at the judge’s discretion.

This year after not participating in the county and state competitions for maybe 10 years, I am returning at full force. At the state fair I am doing something new to me by participating in the blue ribbon contest where you cook your product before a live audience in a 2.5 hour time period. To compete, you submit up to two recipes in each competition and if your recipe is selected, then you register. In my case, I will be in the desserts made with dairy and the pie contest. If I win first prize in either, then I have the right to return for the Grand Champion competition. If I decline, then second runner up may participate. The last time I saw this in action, they had an organist playing bouncy music as you cooked away.

There is the normal competition, then there are the contests sponsored by companies like Spam, KC masterpiece, Hidden Valley Ranch, Crisco, which offer greater prize money.

Long ago, the Crisco State Fair competitions were lead-ins for a Pillsbury Bake-Off type of competition. All the first prize winners at state level were invited to a central location to prepare their pie. First prize at the national level was a kitchen’s worth of major appliances and $25,000 for remodeling your kitchen. I came darn close to winning at the state level, except my misguided insistence on a meringue top on a humid day in summer. Stupid! The contest is no longer conducted this ambitiously but it was more achieveable than any beauty contest or lottery with very good odds in your favor.

I plan to have a lot of fun this summer. I recommend the experience.

Regards,

There was a lovely article in yesterday's New York Times about pie judging at the Marquette, MI county fair. This Land-Where the Competition is Stiff but Sweet

Holding the small dog, her dog, is Elaine Racine, 60, a short and bubbly foodie who owns a local convenience store called Elaine’s Place. In judging the fair’s baked goods over the last decade, she has demonstrated almost supernatural abilities, as if she can detect margarine in your banana bread by sight.

Her pre-judgment drink was a cosmopolitan.

The other woman is Judy Anderson, 62, tall and deadpan funny. A retired social worker, she helped Ms. Racine judge last year’s contest, when one entrant scandalously used a cake mix. Another devout foodie, she does not shy from harsh assessments; her mere glance can make your meringue sweat.

She prepared for this evening with a manhattan, three cherries.

How do you sign up for these fair contests? Is there a website to look up? I'd love to try a pie-baking contest or some other sweet endeavor...

I've always been curious about such fair competitions, but I've never participated. I grew up going to the Minnesota State Fair (largest state fair in the country) and that just seemed too big and intimidating. But paradoxically any other fair just doesn't grab my attention as well, and I don't often go. I haven't been to a single fair in Illinois yet, though I still make my annual trek back to Minnesota for that state fair (only as an observer and food-on-a-stick eater).

Go, C2, Go!

The Sandwich Fair is still coming up, probably time to still enter if you call.

http://www.sandwichfair.com/

I've been to a lot of County Fairs, and the Sandwich Fair has (in my opinion) hands down the best Culinary Arts Competition. I could spend hours looking at the baking, canned goods, and sewing and quilting projects. They use to do a chili cookoff. I ended up winning 2nd place in that. It is so much fun. Good luck!

razbry wrote:I've been to a lot of County Fairs, and the Sandwich Fair has (in my opinion) hands down the best Culinary Arts Competition.

I would agree. Also, the Sandwich Fair is the FINAL county fair in the region is considered by most of the farmers that I know in McHenry Co. to be the best fair in the area (although last week's Boone Co. Fair is my favorite).

One observation. Some of the state fair competitions are LESS competitive than certain county competitions. In many states, like Missouri, the state fair is sparsely attended and draws fewer challengers. Others, like Nebraska, draw the best of the various county fairs and are very competitive.

Hi,

Did you know the Michigan State Fair is no longer? If you go to their website, it appears they laid off their staff as of October 1st. A Michigan financial governmental authority is seeking bids to redevelop the land.

Regards,

Cathy2 wrote:Hi,

Did you know the Michigan State Fair is no longer? If you go to their website, it appears they laid off their staff as of October 1st. A Michigan financial governmental authority is seeking bids to redevelop the land.

Regards,

It was a "zero" of a fair as it was held in the northside of Detroit near the Speedway. I went there one time and well, that was enough.

On the subject of state fairs, the Nebraska State Fair has ceded its current location to the University of Nebraska - Lincoln and will be relocating to Grand Island, which is about 85 miles west and 150 miles from Omaha. Some of the locals from western Nebraska are overjoyed about it. To me, I think that it is a real mistake and the fair will see declines in attendance going forward. Being a state fair person, the current fair was pretty weak with the exception of 1) the involvement on the UN-L extention and the super-outstanding 4-H displays, exhibits, and competitions.

Joe,

Thanks for the feedback. Illinois State Fair is a big ol'financial pump for Springfield, which would not go away without a big fight. I had a feeling Michigan have had problems, which you confirmed.

Regards,

Cathy2 wrote:Joe,

Thanks for the feedback. Illinois State Fair is a big ol'financial pump for Springfield, which would not go away without a big fight. I had a feeling Michigan have had problems, which you confirmed.

Regards,

About the only reason that many Michiganders (especially agricultural people) head into Detroit is to work at the Eastern Market in Detroit (and for the excellent hospitals in the city).

Hi,

These culinary competitions can reap some pretty nice dividends.

I learned a regular competitor at the IL State Fair from two different contests:
- Four tickets to the Super Bowl two years in a row.
- A one visit to King Arthur's test kitchen for a week.

Years ago Crisco's grand prize for their pie competition was a $25,000 kitchen overhaul plus appliances.

Regards,

Look at this county fair in Marion from the Statesman journal. They have all sorts of prizes from Outstanding Food Bowl Award, Home Baked Bread... heck they even have a weiner dog race that the winner finished in under 3 seconds! http://www.statesmanjournal.com/article/20100810/NEWS/8100317/1001/ARCHIVE. I'd love it if their recipes were published as well!

According to Wikipedia the Michigan State Fair is supposedly the oldest state fair in America but its attendance dropped from a peak of 1.2 million in 1966 to 217,000 in 2009. Its demise seems inevitable. On the other hand, Minnesota had its biggest year last year with a record 1,790,497 over 12 days and this year the first two days set new records and they are probably on track to set yet another new overall record. Minnesota runs through Labor Day.

I've checked state fairs personally and have studied Google maps to compare facilities. Minnesota leads in facility size as well. Here are the latest stats for the nation's largest fairs.

Indiana 2010

Busiest day: 79,591
Total: 952,020 over 17 days
Average/Day: 56, 001


Iowa 2010

Busiest day: 103,085
Total: 967,381 over 11 Days
Average/Day: 87,944


Minnesota 2009

Busiest day: 207,075
Total: 1,790,497 over 12 days
Average/Day: 149,083


Texas

Does not publish official attendance. School children get in free.
Estimates 3,000,000 over 24 days
Average/Day: 125,000 est.


No other states, including Illinois, top 900,000. Illinois' 2010 attendance was 701,056.

I forgot to mention I attended the California State Fair in Sacramento last year. It was nice. I enjoyed the exhibits. Food wise, other than a corn dog, I could not find much deep-fried or on a stick.

Davydd wrote:According to Wikipedia the Michigan State Fair is supposedly the oldest state fair in America but its attendance dropped from a peak of 1.2 million in 1966 to 217,000 in 2009. Its demise seems inevitable. On the other hand, Minnesota had its biggest year last year with a record 1,790,497 over 12 days and this year the first two days set new records and they are probably on track to set yet another new overall record. Minnesota runs through Labor Day.

I've checked state fairs personally and have studied Google maps to compare facilities. Minnesota leads in facility size as well. Here are the latest stats for the nation's largest fairs.

The Michigan State Fair was shut down this year when the Granholm administration refused to kick in the $450,000 state subsidy in the TY2010 state budget. To me, the Michigan state fair is in the wrong location if they ever plan to reinstate it. I think that they are going to convert the fairgrounds to a Metropark in the next five years as the economy improves. Personally, I would like to see it more centrally located.

State fair attendance figures are misleading. In many states, exhibitors and multi-day passes are not included; in others, school groups are excluded.

Then there are states with several large fairs. Illinois has the DuQuoin State Fair; New Mexico, the South New Mexico Fair. Texas has the Houston Livestock and Rodeo Show which drew more than 2.1M in its 20 day run, which is BY FAR, the best fair I have been to in terms of entertainment and livestock.

And the Canadian National Exhibition draws about 1.3M per year.

Hi,

At the Ohio State Fair last weekend, I met the woman who took second place last year. She is moving to Iowa and promises to see me there. Due to owning homes in both states, she will be in the Iowa State Fair next week. Her motivation: $3000 first prize for cinnamon buns on the first day. There is real money at these fairs.

Regards,

Cathy2 wrote:Hi,

At the Ohio State Fair last weekend, I met the woman who took second place last year. She is moving to Iowa and promises to see me there. Due to owning homes in both states, she will be in the Iowa State Fair next week. Her motivation: $3000 first prize for cinnamon buns on the first day. There is real money at these fairs.

Regards,

The Iowa State Fair is one of the best fairs that I have been to. It is well worth the drive to Des Moines. Cathy, you would really like to take a day to look at the State Fair Museum on the grounds.

They had a lot of GREAT exhibits and a lot of great 4-H exhibits. The food booths were pretty poor and more expensive than most other fairs.

I doubt that we'll make it out there as we are planning to hit the Minnesota State Fair over Labor Day for the first time since 1985.

Hi,

I plan to be at Iowa a week from Sunday. I will follow your recommendations to see as much as possible.

Thanks!

Regards,

Went to the Sandwich Fair yesterday and spent a long time in the home ec. building. I could not help but notice that there was a sharp decline in the canning competition. I use to marvel at the precision cuts of vegetables and then placement into the jars. Alas, no more. Very few entries. Some categories had only three entries (winners all), but some of them I don't think I would want to even taste. No canned meat entries. Uninspired jams and jellies. Even the labels looked like they were just slapped on. Maybe I'll get inspired now to enter next year!

razbry wrote:Went to the Sandwich Fair yesterday and spent a long time in the home ec. building. I could not help but notice that there was a sharp decline in the canning competition. I use to marvel at the precision cuts of vegetables and then placement into the jars. Alas, no more. Very few entries. Some categories had only three entries (winners all), but some of them I don't think I would want to even taste. No canned meat entries. Uninspired jams and jellies. Even the labels looked like they were just slapped on. Maybe I'll get inspired now to enter next year!

HI,

I will answer to what I have observed at the Lake County Fair. Participation in the culinary division is dramatically less than it was 20 years ago. Cost of participation is dramatically higher than it was 20 years ago. Whereas at the IL State Fair, it is considerably less fees with much more participation.

Iowa State Fair was very, very impressive, especially the woman behind it. They have over $200,000 in prize money. There is a nominal fee to purchase product entree tickets. They do something I have not seen at any other fair: you buy entrance slots, then show up without any prior commitment to the competition. I didn't know if we would have zero, five or 50 contestants. All the other fairs knew how many registered to help plan our efforts.

At the Ohio State Fair, I met the woman who won second prize for the heirloom recipe contest last year. She was in the process of moving to Iowa. Since she already had a home there, she was driving over to compete. She was targeting the cinnamon roll contest that had a grand prize of $3,000.

The lack of participation really reflects the management of the fair and their willingness to entice people to participate.

Regards,

It may be that the state fairs are shrinking in many states, but the county and grange fairs retain their events and attendance. In New York two years ago, I attended the Dutchess County Fair, which was booming with crafts such as spinning and dyeing, as well as culinary contests. In CT, and perhaps the rest of New England, the Grange Fairs are where the canning and cake-decorating bragging rights are earned. Possibly, if these home-based arts are practiced by an aging group, accessibility is the problem at the larger state fair venues.
Quite a hike to get from even the handicapped parking to the Home Ec Building at the MO State Fair, though there was a shuttle. Still, I saw quite a few older couples on scooters.

Hi,

Michigan State Fair is rising from the ashes, now branded Fifth Third Michigan State Fair. It is running this weekend in Novi, Michigan. A friend who lives nearby advised this may be the second year.

More details can be found here: http://www.michiganstatefairllc.com/

Regards,

Michigan has gotten fairly passionate about promoting Michigan farm products, so this might do well. Also, Farmington, which is close to Novi, has the best farmers' market I've ever been to -- so I'm thinking they've got both the talent and the market for a state fair. I wish them well. (And since my mom lives near Novi, if they have it again next year, I may try to get there.)

Cynthia wrote:Michigan has gotten fairly passionate about promoting Michigan farm products, so this might do well. Also, Farmington, which is close to Novi, has the best farmers' market I've ever been to -- so I'm thinking they've got both the talent and the market for a state fair. I wish them well. (And since my mom lives near Novi, if they have it again next year, I may try to get there.)

The best farmers market I have seen is the Eastern Market in Detroit. There are dozens of real farmers, both from the thumb of Michigan as well as Essex Co., Ontario who come with all of their goods. The signs in the market will tell you which ones are farmers and which ones are wholesalers. If you show up early, many of the farmers will take the time to talk to you. I used to head there before work on Saturdays and it is one place where I learned a lot about herbs and spices.

I would also recommend the Windsor Public Market, across the border, if you can locate it. It has not consistently had a home since Casion Windsor displaced it.