State Fair trips are awarded to 4-H’ers who:

• Have completed 6th grade. (With several exceptions of State Dog Show, Share the Fun, Arts Alive, Engineering Design Challenge, & other non-overnight experiences) 

• Have met the required deadlines of 4-H enrollment, project registration in FairEntry, & livestock requirements

• All youth participating as a State Fair 4-H livestock exhibitor in beef, dairy, sheep, swine, poultry, rabbits, meat goat, dairy goat, and llama-alpaca must have completed a livestock quality assurance training in which there are two training options 1) a 3 hour in-person workshop (LQA&E), or 2) a 1 hour on-line training (YQCA). Youth completing either quality assurance training option will receive a certificate of completion & must submit to 4-H Staff at the Hennepin County Extension Office by May 15. 

• Demonstrated a top-quality exhibit & have received at least a blue ribbon (generally).

Per Minnesota 4-H Policies, State-Fair-qualified 4-H’ers may participate in State Fair activities in the following ways:

• Dual Trip Policy - 1 Livestock Project  &/or 1 General Project

• And any or all* of Share the Fun, Demonstrations, Arts Alive (Arts-in), Cooking events, animal science education exhibits, judging teams

*Please note that participation in two or more activities may not always be possible due to schedule conflicts of judging times, which rarely can be re-negotiated. Please review the schedule in the State Fair packet prior to accepting your State Fair trip(s).

On the State Fair Trip display board in the 4-H Tent, 4-H’ers will accept or decline their State Fair trip(s) using designated colored dot system:

• • Green - Trip is accepted - & now will go & complete paperwork!

  • Yellow - I’m an alternate, & would accept a trip if a spot became available

  • Red- I’m declining this trip, because

    1. I’ve accepted another project to take to the State Fair

    2. I cannot attend State Fair

    3. Other (no explanation needed!)

We believe this system will help youth understand the variety of projects available to them, and allow opportunities to share successes with other 4-H youth! 

The Minnesota 4-H State Fair Administration designates the number of State Fair trips in each project area for each County's 4-H program. General project trip numbers are calculated based on project enrollment in 4-H Online, and livestock trips are based on previous project showcase season numbers in FairEntry. 

See Quota info below!