Since the late 1990's, the Kentucky 4-H Country Ham Project has been an annual tradition at the Kentucky State Fair. The project began with less than 40 participants. Today, there are nearly 800 entrants from approximately 70 counties. Typically, youth prepare their hams and give a speech to accompany their project. Due to the current pandemic, 4-Her's submitted their hams and wrote an essay in place of the speech. Bell County 4-H had three youth that participated in the project in 2020. They began in January by preparing and curing their hams and it culminated with the hams and essays being scored in August. The hams are graciously donated by a local packing house and the youth are able to partake in the project free of charge. During the project, youth learn about the history of country hams and understand that food doesn't just appear on shelves of their supermarket. The Bell County 4-H Agent and a committed volunteer oversaw the process and assisted youth with their hams. The youth are now able to describe the procedure of curing a country ham. One youth stated that she now values the tradition of curing country hams and she hopes to pass it along to family members for years to come.