Kelly and Joe Craft bid record-setting $10.5 million for Kentucky State Fair’s grand champion ham

Thursday’s 60th annual Kentucky Farm Bureau (KFB) Country Ham Breakfast and Charity Auction at the Kentucky State Fair brought in a record-setting winning bid of $10.5 million from Kelly and Joe Craft.

During a thrilling live auction, prominent community and business leaders bid for a chance to walk away with the Kentucky State Fair’s Grand Champion Country Ham. Weighing in at 18.2 lbs., the prized ham was produced by Broadbent B&B based in Kuttawa. The winning bid was the largest single bid in the event’s history. For the previous three years, the Crafts and Central Bank combined their bids. In 2023, their combined winning bid was $10 million.

“My husband and I are honored to have won the charity auction for the Kentucky State Fair Grand Champion Ham at the 60th annual Country Ham Breakfast,” said Kelly Craft, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. “We believe that helping others is a fundamental value, and we are fortunate to be able to pledge a large amount of our resources to philanthropic causes each year. This auction is a wonderful vehicle to do that. As lifelong Kentuckians, we both know what an outstanding, supportive partner Kentucky Farm Bureau is to businesses, farms, and residents across the Commonwealth all year long, but this annual event underscores their commitment to strengthening communities through collaboration.”

The Crafts will donate their $10.5 million bid to several charitable organizations and projects, including Boys and Girls Clubs across the Commonwealth, and continued rebuilding efforts in Eastern Kentucky to help families who lost everything in the 2022 floods.

“The Kentucky Farm Bureau Country Ham Breakfast and Charity Auction is a special tradition in our Commonwealth,” said KFB President Eddie Melton. “I have been attending this event for years, and I am always proud to see so many people from both rural and urban communities come together to celebrate agriculture and give back to those in need.”

This year’s Grand Champion Ham was presented to breakfast attendees by Miss Kentucky 2024, Chapel Tinius. The lively auction was accompanied by a breakfast of Kentucky Proud food, with attendees totaling more than 1,600. Kentucky Farm Bureau President Eddie Melton; U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell; and Kentucky Commissioner of Agriculture Jonathan Shell were among those who gave speeches to the sellout crowd.

Along with today’s winning bid, the Kentucky Farm Bureau Country Ham Breakfast has raised over $44 million for nonprofit organizations and charities since 1964.

Kentucky Farm Bureau

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