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Buyers at Lycoming County Fair boosts livestock prices

The local Lycoming County Fair has been occurring for the past 153 years, and each year there is more livestock at the fair, which means more 4-H participants. To help aid these 4-H kids there needs to be buyers for their livestock.

Eclipse, a gilt, or a female pig that has yet to have a litter of piglets, walks around the show ring at the Lycoming County Fair before her sale. John Young from Young Industries bought Eclipse for $1,600. Photo by Geri Schnure 2024

Many local small businesses are buyers for the 4-H kids, but most are asked by the 4-H kids themselves to buy the animal that they raised for the past few months or past years.

“[A] 4-H member approached my wife and me very respectfully, both verbally and [with a] handwritten letter with explanations of who they were, and their history with their animal, [and the] time and effort they have put into the animal,” said Mr. Levi Spring, when asked how kids approached him.

Spring owns a local auctioneer business called Levi Spring Auctioneering, which sells local properties and estate sales.

4-H kids raise their livestock anywhere from six months to two years and they put a lot of time, hard work, and dedication into these animals. But it is not just walking an animal around in a ring. There is paperwork that comes with being in 4-H.

One of the many actions a 4-H participant must take is they have to find buyers for their livestock. When asked about buying livestock, Spring said, “[Kids come up] about 1- 1 ½ months each year before the auction date.”

Many of these buyers are even willing to spend anywhere from $200-$10,000 for just one or multiple animals. All of the market animals are sold at the fair. From rabbits to steers, buyers are willing to spend their money to help support these children while helping them build a future for themselves. Not all animals go to the butcher, some are bought as pets and some are bought to be processed and consumed.

Senior Leah Kaufman poses for a picture with John Young, the buyer of her two pigs. Young is a large contributor to the Lycoming County Fair livestock sale. Photo by Todd Kaufman 2024

“[I] processed and provided the meat to my employees as a meal,” said Mr. John Young, the owner of Young Industries.

Young bought two pigs and a steer this year at the Lycoming County fair, he spent about $6,800 on livestock to support the 4-H kids. In the future, he said he would like to spend around $10,000 on kids’ livestock.

The buyers from the Lycoming County Fair spent a total of $295,625.00 on all the market livestock. Most buyers receive a buyer’s gift for buying kids’ animals, they range from barbeque supplies to everyday items. 

Featured photo (at top): Hard-working 4-H kids show their appreciation for the buyers of their lovestock at the Lycoming County Fair. The buyers spend lots of money and they are willing to help the local 4-H kids. These kids spend hours upon hours working and training their animals while constantly preparing them for the sale. 

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