Manatee County Fair

01/16/2025

Our judge for tonight’s Steer Show is Tennessee native Jared Givens. Growing up he exhibited livestock, but his true love was judging livestock. After being named an All-American in high school he went on to BlackHawk East and then to Oklahoma State University where he was a National Champion in 2010. Since then he has worked in the industry and coached Livestock Judging at the collegiate level.

Jared raises competitive steers and heifers and markets them in the southeast. He's also is a consultant for many purebred seedstock operations. He is grateful to be here sorting stock and working with the young people here today!

We hope to see you at tonight's Steer Show in the Mosaic Arena starting at 6 p.m.!

01/16/2025

Judging tonight's Rabbit Show this year is Jeff Albright from Sorrento, FL.

Jeff has 30 years of experience as a judge and is ARBA licensed. He has judged all over the U.S. and Canada and is a U.S. Marine Corp veteran.

Jeff has been married for 45 years and has three children. He is very active in his community and serves on a variety of their boards.

Our Rabbit Show will take place in Cook Arena starting at 6 p.m.

01/16/2025

Each day of the 2025 Manatee County Fair is packed with fun, including livestock shows and nightly entertainment for all 11 days of the Fair. Tag a friend you want to invite to the Fair!

01/16/2025

The 2025 Manatee County Fair has arrived ! ! !

Livestock shows, tasty treats, fun contests, Midway rides, great live music and TONS MORE. What are YOU most excited about seeing and doing at this year's Fair?

01/15/2025

Congratulations to our 2025 Fair ticket giveaway winner, Trista LaCross!

01/15/2025

👏👏👏 GREAT WORK to all the great kids who participated in last night's Beef Breeding Showmanship competition, and a special congratulations to our winners!🥇🥈🥉

01/14/2025

01/14/2025

Congratulations to the young men and women who participated in last night's Beef Breeding competition! Everyone did a great job.

01/14/2025

The Beef Breeding Show is tonight in the Mosaic Arena at 6 p.m. We're happy to welcome our 2025 Beef Breeding Showmanship Judge Ms. Katie Quincey.

Katie is from Trenton, FL. She is a graduate of the University of Florida where she earned her degree in Food and Resource Economics and was a member of the 2014 UF Livestock Judging Team. Currently, she works as an Environmental Specialist for the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS). Ms. Quincey’s family owns and operates Hines Cattle Company, a cow-calf operation.

01/13/2025

Thanks ABC7 Sarasota - WWSB for today's extended segment with Fair Manager Danny Alfonso!

01/13/2025

The Fair is still three days away but our livestock competitions are underway! Tonight, Jan. 13, is our beef breeding competition at 6 p.m. in Mosaic Arena. We're happy to welcome our 2025 Beef Breeding Show Judge Ms. Baylee Ethridge.

Baylee grew up in Williston, FL with a strong background in the cattle industry. Baylee has judged at both Clarendon College and West Texas A&M on highly competitive judging teams, being in the top 5 at several national contests while she received her bachelor's degree in Agriculture Communications with a minor in Animal Science. Baylee and her family own and operate Etheridge Cattle Company, a beef cattle preconditioning facility in Williston, FL. She enjoys coaching her middle school livestock judging team and working with youth across the state.

This is the first in a series of posts recognizing the great judges who assist with our livestock competitions each year. Look for more judge profiles later this week!

01/11/2025

🎡 🎟️ GIVEAWAY ALERT! 🎡 🎟️ 🎡��We're giving away 2 FREE tickets to the 2025 Manatee County Fair! Entering is easy: Just like this post and tag 3 friends in the comments. DEADLINE to enter: Tuesday, Jan. 14 at 5 p.m.

🎯 A single winning entry will be randomly selected and announced on this page on Wed., Jan. 15 at 10 a.m. (NOTE: Don’t click on any messages or links stating you are a winner. It could be a scam) 🎯��🗓️ Hurry, the Fair is just a few days away! 🗓️

Don't miss your chance to enjoy the rides, games, and fun-filled moments. See you at the fair! 🎠

01/10/2025

The first livestock competition of the 2025 Fair season took place on Jan. 4. There was a great field of contestants this year. Congratulations to our winners!

01/10/2025

We're thrilled to announce the Manatee County's 2025 Distinguished Citizen of the Year, Jim Toomey! Here's Jim surrounded by his family and Fair leadership during yesterday's VIP luncheon.

Jim is a huge supporter of public education and the local youth who compete in our annual livestock competitions. Thank you for your humble leadership and commitment to agriculture, Jim!

01/08/2025

We were proud to host this special event. Congratulations, Sheriff Wells and thanks for all you do for the Fair and for Manatee County!

01/06/2025

Who’s seen our ad in the Observer? Be sure to like and share it with friends 😜