2023 Minnesota State Fair food, animals, and guests by the numbers
ST. PAUL, Minn. — Two days after the gates closed, you might still be coming down from the sugar and adrenaline rush that is the Minnesota State Fair. More than 1.8 million visitors got together on the fairgrounds this summer.
Some may remember 2023's fair as the "Great Minnesota Sweat Together," with extreme heat Labor Day Weekend. Despite this, 2023 was the 6th most attended state fair on record.
"The heat certainly played a factor in the second weekend," Minnesota State Fair CEO Renee Alexander said.
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It was Alexander's first year as CEO. Her highlight is the positivity felt around the fairgrounds.
"The most surprising thing to me was just the level of dedication we had from our staff and vendors, exhibitors. Everyone across the board is just so committed to this being the best fair it can be," she said.
There were seven new food vendors and 34 new foods including many pickle flavored items which proved to be the trendy taste in 2023. The fair also made strides in being more inclusive with a new sensory-friendly morning at the Kidway and Mighty Midway as well as a new accessible restroom.
"We are always looking to improve and make the fair more accessible to all and those were two hallmark additions we had this year that were really successful and I anticipate we'll move forward with in some fashion," Alexander said.
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In all, 156 animals were born at the fair in the CHS Miracle of Birth Center. Agriculture and creative competitions drew more than 33,000 entries with $2 million dollars in prize money. An auction raised $1.2 million for 4-H members and $140,000 were raised in scholarships.
Metro Transit said ridership to the fair was up 33% from last year. While it wasn't a record-breaking attendance year overall, the second day of the fair did break a daily attendance record.