Amid the rings of cowbells, cheers and near-incoherent babbling of the auctioneer was something almost anyone can understand: dollar signs.
Just an hour into the 2026 Ventura County Fair’s junior livestock auction on Aug. 7, chickens, rabbits and lambs had sold for over $50,000 combined, with more still to come as cows, pigs, goats and turkeys were yet to be sold.
For many school-age children participating as part of their local 4-H, Future Farmers of America or other agriculture-centered club, the competition is more than just about raising money for college or other purposes.
Lucia LaVere, 12, of Ventura, joined the Briggs 4-H Club with little agriculture experience. “I came to the fair since I was a baby and always liked seeing the animals, so I wanted to try it myself,” she said.
Lucia entered the fair’s auction for the second year in a row, with her pig Uno, she said.
Breanna Cole, agriculture teacher at Adolfo Camarillo High School and advisor for the school’s Future Farmers of America chapter, says the program and those like it are a good way for youth to learn responsibility and get involved in the local agricultural community.
Cole is one of the program’s graduates and has had a lifelong passion for agriculture, which she instills in her students.
Moorpark High Schooler and 17-year-old entrepreneur Nicholas Pineda was one of the hundreds of youth, who sold an animal he spent months of his life raising.
“I think it’s important that people see this side of agriculture,” Pineda said. “We gotta know where our food comes from.”
Pineda is no stranger to the lifestyle. The auction marked Pineda’s fifth and penultimate year raising and selling livestock for his local 4-H club.
He competes in jackpot shows, which are livestock shows held across the state. Pineda sells homemade animal grooming products and show lessons as part of his business, Valley Farms Livestock Co.
The Moorpark teen entered his 1,317-pound steer, Remi, who he said was named after both the rat from the animated film “Ratatouille” and the firearm brand Remington. Remi won the coveted title of Grand Champion Market Steer and sold for $10 a pound at auction, netting the teen $13,170.
“I’m proud of where he placed,” Pineda said.
Ernesto Centeno Araujo covers breaking news for the Ventura County Star. He can be reached at ecentenoaraujo@vcstar.com, 805-437-0224 or @ecentenoaraujo on Instagram and X.
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Ventura County youth sell steer, more in yearly county fair auction
Reporting by Ernesto Centeno Araujo, Ventura County Star / Ventura County Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Ernesto Centeno Araujo, Ventura County Star | USA TODAY Network
