Junior Livestock Auction a success
From rabbits and goats to hogs and steers, members of local 4-H and Future Farmers of America programs spent the better part of the last year learning about responsibility and how to raise and market livestock.
The culmination of that year’s work is the annual Yuba-sutter Fair’s Jr. Livestock Auction. But the event was in question after the fair was canceled this year due to COVID-19. The community rallied to support area youth and made the virtual event – a first for the Yuba-sutter area – a success, said Yuba-sutter Fairgrounds CEO Dave Dillabo.
“I went through the program myself, and I couldn’t imagine working all of those hours just to not sell an animal. So, to receive the amount of support we did this year means the world to them,” Dillabo said. “That will result in 95 percent of them, if not all, wanting to do it again next year, and they’ll now have the financial ability to do so. As a community, we are incentivizing them and building the leaders of our future.”
While participation was down a bit this year, there were still over 330 lots. The auction itself generated about $600,000 in sales, Dillabo said, and that doesn’t include add-ons, which is a way community members can support a 4-H or FFA member financially without having to buy the animal.
In a normal year, there would be an average of about 300 add-ons, but this year there were 880 add-ons, which equated to more than $98,000 in additional funds for participants.
“While it may not be a huge number
on an individual basis, when you add it all together, the overall value and contribution to the youth this year was huge,” he said. “We are still collecting add-ons through the rest of the week, and
I’d guess we’ve raised an additional $50,000. All in all it was really neat to see the amount of new support. That will have a huge impact in terms of supporting these kids.”
Dillabo said there were more than 50 new buyers this year, which is a substantial increase.
This year’s two-day auction was conducted on Bidcal.com. Dillabo said the process went well without any real technical issues. Participants recorded videos of their animals to help with the judging portion of the event. Once the animals were graded, buyers and supporters could go online and submit bids or addons.
“I’d say one of the neater things that came out of the process was the accessibility and ease of doing it – it attracted a lot of new buyers,” he said. “We’ve learned a lot from this process, and plan to incorporate the online portal, in some form or fashion, in future events.”
Dillabo said a final tally on the event will likely be available early next week, though he’s optimistic that by the end of the week the overall sale will gross more on an individual basis than in previous years.
“Our local economy is hurting, all sectors of it, and we are going through challenging times, so to see that type of support come from this, especially during a time like this, it’s pretty amazing,” Dillabo said. “We can’t thank the community enough. It’s amazing to see the support these kids receive year in and year out.”
Those interested in supporting a 4-H or FFA exhibitor can submit addons through the YubaSutter Fair office until Friday at 5 p.m. Dillabo said submission forms are online at www.ysfair.com and can also be submitted by phone or in person at the office – 442 Franklin Avenue, Yuba City. For more information, call 674-1280.