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A country ham just sold for a staggering $10 million at the Kentucky State Fair, continuing a tradition that’s evolved from humble beginnings into one of the most philanthropic events in the state. The price tag – which breaks down to roughly $606,000 per pound – wasn’t about the meat itself but rather the charitable impact behind the auction.
While most state fair competitions offer modest ribbons and small cash prizes, the Kentucky Ham Breakfast has transformed into something far more significant. What began in 1964 with a winning ham selling for just $124 has exploded into an annual multimillion-dollar charitable powerhouse.
This year’s ham weighed just 16.5 pounds.
The Kentucky State Fair itself dates back to 1816, making it one of America’s oldest state fairs (though Massachusetts claims the title of oldest, having started in 1811). Today’s event, held in Louisville since 1956, draws hundreds of thousands of visitors who come to see competitions ranging from agriculture and baking to quiltmaking.
Broadbent B&B, which normally sells its whole country hams for between $80 and $230, produced this year’s Grand Champion ham. It’s their second consecutive win in the prestigious competition, where judges evaluate entries solely on sight, smell, and texture – never actually tasting the meat during judging.
The winning bid came from a partnership between Central Bank CEO Luther Deaton and the husband-wife team of Joe and Kelly Craft. Joe serves as president and CEO of coal company Alliance Resource Partners, while Kelly previously served as ambassador to both Canada and the United Nations.
Record-Breaking Charitable Auction
Last year’s auction set a Kentucky State Fair record when the Crafts paid $10.5 million for an 18.2-pound Broadbent ham ($576,923 per pound). The funds supported Kentucky’s Boys and Girls Clubs and helped with recovery efforts from the devastating 2022 floods that hit the state.
According to The Courier Journal, this year’s $10 million will be distributed to various worthy causes throughout Kentucky. The auction allows bidders to designate charities of their choice while receiving tax benefits for their contributions.
For comparison, the Guinness Book of World Records lists a leg of Iberian Bellota as the most expensive commercially available ham ever sold – it retailed for approximately $13,200 in Japan when it earned that distinction in 2020. That’s less than 1% of what Kentucky’s charitable ham auctions now regularly command.
The country ham competition has clearly become the crown jewel of the Kentucky State Fair. While visitors enjoy hundreds of other competitions and exhibitions during the multiday affair, nothing generates the excitement – or the funds for good causes – quite like the annual Ham Breakfast auction that transforms a humble cured pork product into a multimillion-dollar charitable powerhouse.
