Things to Know About 4-H FFA Livestock Sale at Western Montana Fair

It's one of the real cornerstones of just about any county fair. And we want to wish all the hard-working kids involved the very best this year!

The 4-H and FFA livestock sale is where 4-H and FFA youth who are participating in market animal projects sell their project animal. The proceeds of each sale go to the individual 4-H and FFA members. Many of these young people put their sale earnings toward college, in addition to using the money to offset the costs of raising their animals and purchase a new market animal for the next year.

When you purchase a 4-H or FFA animal at the sale, you are getting a high-quality product. Market animals are raised individually in the best conditions and on the best feed available. The annual sale is set for this Saturday, August 14, beginning at 8:00 a.m. at the auction arena along the west side of the Western Montanan Fairgrounds. We've included some basic information that might help you if you're new to the auction.

How does the Sale work?

First, preregistration is highly encouraged. On the day of the sale, the sale arena will open at 7:00 a.m. You sign up for the sale in the arena. You will be given a numbered card for bidding, and you will be asked where you want your purchase slaughtered and which butcher you want to process the meat.

OK, I’m the High Bidder Now what?

You will be billed by the Sale Committee. The processing costs are separate from your purchase at the auction. Generally, your butcher will include the slaughter fee, in addition to a per pound cut/wrap fee, in their final bill to you for processing the meat. On Sunday after the sale, all the market animals are shipped to area processors, and the carcasses are graded that week as part of the 4-H and FFA market project. After this, the carcass is delivered to or picked up by your butcher for cutting and wrapping. You should contact your butcher in case they need to make arrangements to transport the meat to their facility.

Buyer’s Options

If you want the whole animal, you, as the buyer, are responsible for the costs of purchasing and processing your animal; and if you don’t want to be billed, you may pay for your purchase immediately after the sale.

My Freezer is Too Small

If you want to share the meat, you can purchase meat as a group, where the costs are shared among several buyers. If you need someone to share in your purchase, contact Autumn Gilleard at 406-544-5300 or Autumn.Gilleard@wmfls.org.

Can I Resell My Purchase?

As far as any transaction like this at the auction, you can't resell, but you can sign your purchase back to the 4-H and FFA committee for resale. All animals consigned to resale are available for purchase at the market price from the sale committee. Resale animals are processed with the other sale animals. You will be billed only for the difference between your bid and the market price. Market prices will be announced at the sale.

We hope this gives you some useful information on how to support 4-H and FFA this year. Here's wishing all the kids high bids!