After a one-year hiatus, the Wisconsin State Fair returned this year, attracting 841,074 attendees for the 11-day event.
That attendance figure is down 25.6% from record State Fair attendance of more than 1.1 million in 2019. But State Fair organizers said the 2021 attendance represents a huge success for the Fair, held during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic that resulted in the cancellation of the 2020 Fair.
“We have an overwhelming amount of gratitude for the opportunity to have hosted the 170th Wisconsin State Fair and celebrate everything we should be so proud of in our great state,” said Kathleen O’Leary, chief executive officer of Wisconsin State Fair Park. “Seeing smiling faces enter our gates again after 724 days was a tremendous accomplishment for our staff, vendors, exhibitors, and board of directors. While we were faced with challenging weather conditions for several days, we persevered to provide the best experience possible for all.”
Other notable numbers from the 2021 Wisconsin State Fair:
- More than 8,000 animals were entered in competitions
- More than 7,000 competitive exhibit entries were judged.
- More than 2,500 exhibitors participated in Fair competitions, including livestock shows, horticulture, textiles, crafts, culinary, cheese, meat, wine, and others.
- The Governor’s Blue Ribbon Livestock Auction raised $303,800, the Governor’s Blue Ribbon Meat Products Auction raised nearly $109,000, and the Blue Ribbon Dairy Products Auction raised over $54,000. A significant portion of the funds raised at these auctions benefit Wisconsin’s youth agriculture programs and provide scholarships.
- The Wisconsin Bakers Association sold nearly 300,000 cream puffs to fairgoers.
- In the Wisconsin Products Pavilion, the Real Wisconsin Cheese Grill sold over 47,000 grilled cheese sandwiches and the Wisconsin Potato Growers served up more than 26,000 baked potatoes during the Fair.
