UJTS Program
The Turkey Program provides an opportunity for youth to experience the poultry production industry from start to finish. At the end of the project the youth will have freshly processed turkeys just in time for Thanksgiving.
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Utah's State Junior Turkey Show is unique in that 4-H and FFA members raise their birds to market age just like other shows, but then the birds are processed in a state-inspected poultry processing plant, cooled in stainless steel tanks, and judged for quality and conformation. The top 30 toms and 30 hens from the judging and the heaviest tom and hen are then sold at the Utah State Junior Turkey Auction. Many of the remaining birds are often sold at participating county auctions. Youth are required to submit a 4-H or FFA record book on their turkey project and are eligible to compete for cash prizes and scholarships sponsored by the show.
Step 1: APRIL The first step in the Turkey Project is ordering your turkey poults. Poults are baby turkeys. This is done by completing the online Poult Order Form and submitting it, along with payment on the Turkey Show Website. Each youth is allowed to purchase up to 15 poults. How much space do you have? Your turkeys will get big (between 20 and 30 lbs when fed correctly) and will need a clean space that predators cannot get into. Who are you going to sell them to? Each youth is responsible for selling their fresh processed birds. They can only show one tom and one hen in the Utah State Junior Turkey show. However, only the top 62 birds in the State Show will qualify for the auction. It is important to think about your buyers, because some buyers prefer smaller birds. Hens tend to mature smaller than toms. Order Forms this year will be held for approval to ensure that you are a registered 4-H or FFA member. 4-H Youth need to be at least 8 and in the 3rd grade as of September 1, 2024. Please Note: All birds received as part of the Utah State Jr. Turkey Show must be processed at the poultry processing plant in Bothwell, Utah in November - NO EXCEPTIONS! If birds are supplied by the Utah Jr. Turkey Show to individuals who do not process their birds at the turkey plant in Bothwell, Utah, they will be on probation the following year. If the violation is repeated, they will not receive poults thereafter. Any exceptions must be approved by the UJTS Committee.
Step 2: Picking up your poults
July
Poults arrive near the end of July. You must contact your 4-H leader or FFA advisor early to mid-July to know the exact delivery date. The exact time of delivery will not be known until the night before, because with live shipments of birds they spend the lease amount of time possible in transport to help with death loss. Reminder emails and texts will be sent from your 4-H office or FFA Advisors. Please pay attention to your email and text messages from your leaders leading up to poult pick up. It is important that poults are picked up promptly from your 4-H office, FFA Advisor, or pre-arranged pick up location as per county or advisor discretion and placed promptly into your home brooder to set them up for optimal growth and development.
Step 3: Raising your turkeys
JULY-NOVEMBER
Ensure that your turkeys have fresh food and water each day.
Step 4: Preparing Your Record Book
4-H and FFA youth have the opportunity to submit their record book for awards. 1st-3rd place will be awarded cash prizes in each age group. Record books must be completed and turned in by midnight the Monday before the State Show. High School seniors can turn their record book in for a chance at a $1,000 scholarship to go towards their future education.
Step 5: Submit your Processing Form
OCTOBER
Before you participate in the UJTS to complete your Turkey Project by processing your birds, you must submit your Processing Form.
This form will designate if you plan to participate in the Utah Junior Turkey State Show and/or your local County Auction, and how many extra birds you will be processing. It is important to remember that all birds purchased through the UJTS Program MUST be processed a the Bothwell Processing Plant. This is MANDATORY and was an agreement you made when you ordered poults.
Step 6: Sell Your Turkeys
It is best to sell your turkeys before the Junior Turkey Show. This can be done in a few different ways. If you are stuck here are a few ideas to help you get started:
Pick a price per pound ($3.00 per pound is average.)
Marker them the right way. People love to purchase meat that was locally raised by 4-H and FFA members.
Contact friends and family
Other things to consider:
It is best to give an estimated weight range when selling them to your customer. That way it provides you with flexibility after they are processed.
Carefully weigh your birds prior to processing as they will bruise easily. This gives you an idea of what size the birds will be which is helpful information to your customers.
Remember: Estimated dressing weight is 70%-80% of of live weight. This means if your birds weighs 25 lbs live they will weight 17.5-20 lbs after processing.
Be sure to provide a "Thank You" note to anyone who purchases your bird at the auction.
Step 7: Utah Junior Turkey Show & Processing Days
NOVEMBER
The UJTS usually takes place the 2 weeks prior to Thanksgiving. The following timeline is very important as it is the participants responsibility to transport their birds to and from the facility.
Wednesday Prior to the show:
The day before your show birds (1 tom and 1 hen per participant) go to the show they must be tagged. Show birds will have a different colored tag than your extra birds.
Once birds are tagged, participants must fill out the Google Form with destination location and bird information. To help make processing cleaned, please withhold feed from the birds the night before/morning of processing.
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Thursday (Show Day 1- Processing):
Show birds must be delivered to the Bothwell Plant by the participant. (7:00 am delivery)
Birds are processed this day by the show committee
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Friday (Show Day 2- Judging):
Show birds are judged by the Junior Turkey Judge.
If your bird is one of the top 62 birds and has qualified for the auction you will be notified by the show committee.
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Saturday (Show Day 3 - Auction/Bird Pickup):
​If participants birds have qualified for the show they must be present in order to participate.
If your birds did not qualify for the auction, youth must pick up their birds from the facility that day.
Participants must wear 4-H and FFA Livestock Dress for the Auction.
Please refer to your associations guidelines on proper attire.
The top 62 birds are auction in the following order:
1st: Grand Champion Tom and Hen
2nd: Heaviest Tom and Hen
3rd: Reserve Champion Tom and Hen
4th: Third Place Tom and Hen
Thereafter, the next 27 show toms and 27 show hens will be auctioned in order of their respective placings.
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The Following Week: (Processing days will be shared once we how many birds we will be processing)
All other birds must be delivered to the Bothwell Plant by the participant (7:00-9:00 am delivery)
Participants are expected to stay and take part in the process. Duties include plucking, weighing, bagging, tagging, etc.
The day following YOUR county processing day:
Participants must pick up their processed birds from the Bothwell Plant.
Birds will not be released the same day as processing due to USDA guidelines and colling requirements. Birds must be picked up between 8:00 and 10:00 am the next day to make room for the next counties birds.
Note: It is important the ensure that you have the necessary equipment to transport your birds (tarps, coolers, etc.) to keep that at the optimal temperature. Many people also schedule customer drop off the day they bring their birds home from the processing plant to ensure they have freezer space available.