Kickapoo Country Fair

The Kickapoo Country Fair took place this past weekend in La Farge, WI. It is the Midwest's largest organic food and sustainability festival. I happened upon it last year because one of my favorite musicians, Brett Dennen was the Musical Headliner. I went for the music and ended up falling in love with the fair. I always have to catch myself when I tell people about this event because I want to say "county fair" instead of "country fair". The words "county fair" seem to trigger images of cotton candy, Ferris wheels, petting zoos, carnival games and rides. This is something much different, though they do have cotton candy (locally made maple syrup cotton candy) and an area with farm animals for petting...or hugging if you feel so inclined. The Fair takes place on the grounds of the Organic Valley headquarters in the beautiful Kickapoo Valley. You can sample a lot of the Organic Valley products including drinkable yogurt and of course it's Wisconsin so lots of cheese. There are booths promoting everything "Green", from Green Home Building to The Green Party. There are two music stages and a children stage as well as stilt walkers, face painters, delicious food vendors and of course the panoramic view of the Valley.

It is great for children and adults alike!

I must admit it is hard to commit to some of the many workshops and lectures available because I'm always drawn to the vendors, music stages and of course the food and beer. This year I did have an opportunity to hear parts of Temple Grandin's talk. Temple Grandin is a Doctor of Animal Science as well as an author and activist living with high-functioning autism. She is considered a leader of both the animal welfare and autism advocacy movements. She is world famous for designing humane slaughterhouses and I've learned that most US slaughterhouses have been influenced by her work. It has also been noted that she is the most accomplished adult with autism in the world and she is widely sought after to provide her personal look at autism. People came out in high numbers to hear her speak on Saturday to hear her speak on both the subjects of animal science and autism. What a treat to have her at the Fair this year!

Fair grounds were quite muddy given all of the rain we had recently received and it took me a few hours to commit to having muddy toes but my feet do seem softer after the mud-bath they received (at no extra charge).



We were at the fair most of the day on Saturday. Sunday we came back for the delicious "Breakfast on the Farm" which is served up in the Organic Valley cafeteria. I enjoyed a feast of fresh vegetarian quiche, biscuits and mushroom gravy, organic yogurt with fruit and granola, cinnamon rolls and organic fair-trade Kickapoo Coffee Company coffee. I was so looking forward to this breakfast because I could remember how great it was last year and I must say this year exceeding my expectations! I wish I would have taken a picture of my plate...it was truly spectacular!

Mike picked up some great Organic Valley coupons at the fair which will be helpful next week when we determine the percentage of organic/local groceries that we purchase!


Who's YOUR Farmer?!?