Geddes, N.Y. — For the past 13 days, 800 pounds of bright yellow butter served as the centerpiece for the New York State Fair. By 11:45 a.m. today, that butter sculpture had been sliced into hundreds of chunks, tossed into 42-gallon extra-strength garbage bags and loaded onto the back of a westbound pickup truck.
Four master gardeners armed with hatchets, knives, windshield ice scrapers and trowels went to town on the sculpture entitled “Dairy Every Day is a Healthy Way — Keeping Kids’ Health on Track.” They and a couple children spent 80 minutes in the Dairy Building’s refrigerated vault deconstructing the piece of art that depicted children and a cow riding on a “New York State Express” train. All they left behind were wire and wooden frames that once had been covered in butter.
At lunchtime today, the butter was on the Thruway heading to Noblehurst Farms in Livingston County. Farmers will shovel the butter, food waste and manure into a digester that will convert it into energy that can power the farm’s on-site creamery. The butter from the 2023 sculpture alone can power one house for three days, said Greg Szklany, a spokesman for the American Dairy Association North East.
The butter for the sculptures comes from O-AT-KA Milk Products in Batavia and was unsuitable for sale due to defects in packaging.
DON’T CLICK THIS! (Unless you really, really want to see 2023 NYS Fair butter sculpture photos)
Final attendance at 2023 NY State Fair exceeds post-pandemic years
Behind the scenes with the Coronas Family Circus Hollywood show at the NYS Fair
Meet the other rock stars who bring NYS Fair concerts to everyone
‘Absolutely ridiculous’ crowd floods NYS Fair for irreverent Baby Gravy concert (review, photos)
****
Charlie Miller finds the best in food, drink and fun across Central New York. Contact him at (315) 382-1984, or by email at cmiller@syracuse.com. (AND he pays for what he and his guests eat and drink, just so you know.) You can also find him under @HoosierCuse on Twitter and on Instagram. Sign up for his free weekly Where Syracuse Eats newsletter here.