Alaska State Fair & Giant Cabbages

On my first day in Alaska, Olivia and I participated in a quintessentially American experience – the state fair. The Alaska State Fair takes place at the end of the summer each year, and when Olivia asked if I’d like to go, it wasn’t a hard decision. Giant produce? Fair food? Random displays and exhibitions? Count me in.

I’d never been to a state fair before, and it was simultaneously exactly what I expected and full of surprises. There were booths selling knick-knacks next to booths selling saunas and hot tubs. We visited the reptile house and saw fish and snakes and lizards. We walked around the craft pavilion and admired the things that people quilted, knitted, crocheted, and cross-stitched. We felt the difference between alpaca and sheep and muskox fibers. We watched performances by various dance groups. And then… we headed to the farm pavilion.

The farm pavilion is where the action happens. It’s where the livestock is kept. The smells are unmatched. We saw sheep and pigs and goats and cows. There was a pregnant pig whose piglets could come at any second! We were a little early to witness the wonder of piglet-birth… 12 piglets were born two days later.

Anyway, the animals weren’t what I wanted to see. I took a look to be polite, but let’s be real – I was there for the giant produce. The pumpkin weigh-off had taken place the day before, so I was looking forward to seeing what a 2,035 lb pumpkin looked like. Olivia told me that it was going to be the size of a small car which was completely overselling it, unless she meant a toy car for children. I have to be honest. I was underwhelmed. I mean, it was an enormous pumpkin, but it wasn’t car-sized. It wasn’t even big enough to take a “James and the Giant Peach”-style adventure in. Oh well.

Even so, the day wasn’t a complete loss. We saw a giant zucchini and a carrot with roots that were at least 4 feet long. Whoever dug that up had some PATIENCE. There was an endless display of regular-sized produce that had been judged to determine the best in show. Best snap peas. Best basil. Apples, potatoes, broccoli, etc. It’s endless. All I could think about was the judges. How long does it take for them to judge all of the entries? How on earth do they determine a winner? The judging criteria was posted – clean, uniform, undamaged, size, color, etc. – but still. It feels very subjective. And after you look at hundreds of snap peas, do they not all start to look the same?

I could go on and on about this, but I have more important things to discuss. We were fortunate to be in attendance on the day of the infamous Cabbage Weigh-Off. I will try to explain, but just know that no words can bring to life the energy, the tension, the excitement that filled the arena.

We sat down on the grandstand overlooking the holding pen. The competitors, seated on large tarps and pieces of plastic, waited around the perimeter with their humans. In the middle, there was a scale, presided over by an official of the Alaska Department of Weights and Measurements. Yes. This is a thing that exists, and contrary to my first thoughts, they do, in fact, have other responsibilities besides weighing large produce at the state fair each year, but none is as important.

As we waited for the festivities to begin, the cabbage fairies (I’m not joking) circulated in the stands with baskets of “cabbage candy” (green-colored white chocolate rosettes). I ate one because I’m always up for some unpackaged candy in a basket that people are reaching into with their definitely clean hands. It’s best not to think too much about these things.

The fairies, though! They were clearly important. I had to know more. I did some quick googling and got the scoop. They are second-generation cabbage fairies. The original fairy group was founded by the mother of the Gen2 lead fairy. She attended the cabbage weigh-off one year and was inspired! (Understandable.) She created this costume that includes a skirt made of cabbage-leaf-shaped placemats. (I read an article about them – see “Sources” below – and that was specifically called out.) I was excited to see what they had planned. I thought that there would maybe be a cabbage-inspired dance or something. You know, a performance. I was a little disappointed to learn that mostly, they just exist. They’re like cabbage ambassadors. They also attend the pumpkin weigh-off, but they don’t dress like pumpkins. They do add some orange into their outfits for the occasion, though. I still think a cabbage dance would be a great addition. I’ll send a suggestion in.

The fairies seem to be one part of a multi-level response to the understanding that watching the weighing of 40 cabbages is not the most thrilling activity. The pumpkin weigh-off involves maneuvering the pumpkins onto the scale using a crane. That sounded exciting! Unfortunately, the cabbages aren’t heavy enough to warrant a crane, so there goes that entertainment option. Some of Olivia’s friends were emceeing the event, helping to move things along by interviewing the cabbages’ humans. Much of the questioning was focused on the cabbage’s name and, if it wasn’t obvious, asking for the provenance of the name. The youth division was up first. We had Dave the cabbage, named as such because “I dunno”. There was also Slug Snack. I liked that one. I wish I had written more down because for some reason, they don’t record the names of the cabbages on the website, just their handlers. That’s not right! Give credit where it’s due.

I expected more from the adults, but honestly, they weren’t much better. I did my own judging, quietly giving each cabbage handler a score for their naming skills. I think that should be an officially judged category in the future. Maybe then, people would take it a little more seriously.

Other side entertainments included the recitation of the top 3 entries to the cabbage limerick competition – yes, you read that right. If you’re interested, you don’t need to be from Alaska to enter! You just need to be struck by the cabbage inspiration fairy. (Link to the winners is below.)

The word is that things weren’t too hostile this year because no one had grown anything close to record-setting size. It was a bad summer (in fact, one cabbage was aptly named “Bad Summer”) – too wet and too much temperature fluctuation. I was told that in ultra-competitive years, the competitors (the cabbages, not the humans) need to be locked up to prevent any possible tampering. Yes, that’s right. Cabbage tampering. Also, apparently, cabbages begin losing body weight the instant they’re harvested, so there’s this balance between waiting as long as possible to harvest and also getting your cabbage to the fair on time.

The biggest cabbages were 90+ pounds. The 2024 winner was 97.35 lbs and its human was also responsible for the winning pumpkin. We learned that looks aren’t everything when it comes to cabbage size. Some of the heaviest ones were not the ones that looked the biggest. It’s all about density.

After the fair is over, the cabbages and other produce are donated to “various Community Services and the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center” (according to the Alaska State Fair website). So enjoy that mental picture – rescued bears eating prize-winning enormous pumpkins and cabbages. Or google it (or find a link in “Sources” below) and you can find actual videos. Or if you’re in Alaska at the right time, you can go and watch it in person!

After the weigh-in, I felt a bit dazed. Olivia and I wandered around a little longer, checking out the rabbits and a bonsai tree display. We ate some fair food for dinner and more fair food for dessert. I went home with a stomach in revolt which feels like an indication of a successful day at the fair.

Sources

Honestly, I recommend checking out all of these links. I found them all very entertaining, and they’re quick reads.

To learn about the cabbage fairies and see some good pictures…

Bushatz, Amy. “The Alaska State Fair cabbage fairies take a final bow, ushering in a new generation.” Anchorage Daily News, 2 September 2023, https://www.adn.com/alaska-life/2023/09/01/the-alaska-state-fair-cabbage-fairies-take-a-final-bow-ushering-in-a-new-generation/

If you’re wondering what a prize-winning cabbage limerick looks like…

Alaska State Fair. “Giant Cabbage Weigh-Off Limerick Contest – 2024.” https://www.alaskastatefair.org/site/result/giant-cabbage-weigh-off-limerick-contest-2024/

If you’d like to learn more about what goes into growing an award-winning pumpkin (there’s a video!)…

Klecka, Joey. “Alaska State Fair crowns giant pumpkin winner for 2024.” Alaska’s News Source, 26 August 2024, https://www.alaskasnewssource.com/2024/08/26/live-alaska-state-fair-giant-pumpkin-weigh-off/

To see some bears eating large veggies…

Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center. “Big Bears Big Veggies 2024.” https://alaskawildlife.org/event/big-bears-big-veggies-2024/

Note: These external links are not maintained. If they stop working at some point, sorry! They worked once upon a time.