Months of work by local 4-H and FFA members will be on display next weekend when the 2026 Chattooga County Agricultural Fair hosts its annual 4-H and FFA Poultry Show and Auction.

The poultry competition is scheduled for Saturday, August 29, at the Chattooga County Agricultural Fair in Summerville. Poultry judging begins at 4 p.m., awards will be announced at 6:30 p.m., and the auction begins at 7 p.m.

For the young people participating, however, the project began long before fair week.

Local students signed up for the 2026 Poultry Project earlier this year and began raising their birds in the spring. Each participating 4-H and FFA member received eight three-day-old chicks to raise specifically for the fair. Along the way, students were required to keep records and attend a workshop teaching them how to select their best birds for competition.

This year’s project features two breeds — Black Australorp and Buff Orpington — both known as good producers of light brown eggs.

After months of caring for the birds, each student will select their best three hens to enter in the poultry show. Those pens of three will be evaluated during judging Saturday afternoon before the winners are announced that evening.

But the competition is only part of the event.

Following the awards presentation, the students’ chickens will be sold during the Poultry Auction at 7 p.m. All proceeds from the sale of a student’s birds will go directly to that student. Buyers will also receive a cage to take their chickens home. Anyone interested in bidding is asked to arrive by 6:30 p.m. to receive a bid number.

The cages were built by students in Mr. Yarbrough’s eighth-grade Chattooga County FFA Basic Agriculture class, adding another student-led component to this year’s poultry project.

Organizers say livestock projects such as the poultry program help young people develop responsibility, self-motivation, record-keeping skills and agricultural knowledge, while the auction gives the community an opportunity to directly support local 4-H and FFA members.

The poultry show is part of a full slate of livestock events at this year’s fair, which runs Thursday, August 27 through Sunday, August 30 at the Chattooga County Agricultural Center in Summerville. Other livestock events include the Junior Market Goat Show, Junior Market Lamb Show, Junior Beef Show, Junior Dairy Show and Market Hog Preview Show.

Poultry judging begins at 4 p.m. Saturday, August 29, awards will be announced at 6:30 p.m., and the auction begins at 7 p.m.