Local Non-Profit Helping Feed People in Need Through Santa Barbara County Fair Livestock Donations
SANTA MARIA, Calif. (KEYT) - A local non-profit organization is helping feed people in need throughout the Central Coast with the purchase of livestock at the Santa Barbara County Fair.
For the past five years, the 37th District Buyers Coalition has provided financial support to 261 youth exhibitors and donate 80,000 pounds of protein.
"We're a 501(c)(3) non-profit that raises money to purchase animals from the Santa Barbara County Fair from 4-H, FFA and Grange exhibitors," said Renli Pope, 37th District Buyers Coalition President. "We process the meat from all those animals and donate it to local charities here on the Central Coast."
Through community donations, coalition funds will be directed towards the purchase of animal projects during the fair auction, helping ensure that students who apply for coalition help will potentially have their animal bought.
To qualify for coalition consideration, each junior exhibitor must submit at least five letters to potential buyers that serve as invitations to attend their livestock auction.
"When we when we support an exhibit here at the Santa Barbara County Fair, we're not just buying an animal, we're investing in a work ethic and a family and the future of agriculture," said Pope. "In 2024, 30% of the exhibitors that sold their animals here lost money on their projects, so it's very important to us that we try to bolster that auction support by having these people invited into the auction and hopefully they can help bring those prices up a little bit."
Once an animal is purchased the coalition, it is later processed and the meat is donated to any one of several different local nonprofit organizations.
"There is a lot of charities here in our community that are really struggling to afford high quality protein for their their meal programs," said Pope. "We've got this new nutritious, locally raised protein that we're able to donate to these organizations, like Good Samaritan Shelter. We do Meals that Connect. We're reaching out to the Buellton Senior Center. We do a lot of food pantries, Welcome Home Military Heroes, Central Coast Athletic Foundation, 17 Strong. We're very diverse. It's not just the kids that we're we're supporting here with their animals, it's also seniors, the housebound, elderly, the homeless. The list goes on and on. It just makes everybody feel good to be able to be a part of it."
The Junior Livestock Auction is scheduled to begin on Friday at 12 p.m. with rabbits, broiler meat pens, and turkeys up for bid, followed by replacement heifers starting at 6:30 p.m.
On Saturday, the auction concludes beginning at 8 a.m. with swine, sheep, beef and, goals on the block.
The Santa Barbara County Fair runs through Sunday, July 12.
For more information about the 37th District Buyers Coalition, click here to visit the official website.
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