Planning for the 2026 All American Events
Successful shows and sales at the North American International Livestock Exposition (NAILE) was the topic of all committees for the 2026 planning meeting for the All American Jersey events.
Jersey breeders from across the country, NAILE and USJersey staff met via Zoom conference calls from March 4-5, 2026, to plan the 73rd edition of The All American Jersey Shows and Sales. This year it will be four days of All Jerseys, All the Time in Louisville, Ky., on November 6-9, 2026.
More than 80 committee members engaged in discussion during the General Session and four committees through Zoom meetings. The meetings were called to order by General Chair Herby Lutz, Chester, S.C. Attending members also heard from NAILE officials Corinne Fetter, Dan Grigson, and Bobby Bell as well as Executive Secretary Neal Smith.
Recap of the 2025 Event
The 2025 All American was again one of the largest events in more than 30 years for participants. Total animals through the ring were 417 in the open show and National Jersey Jug Futurity, plus 295 head exhibited by 175 youth in the junior show. The Pot O’Gold Sale again offered a strong group of 29 production-bred, all genotyped heifers with an average of $4,263.79 followed by the highly successful All American Sale of 56 lots averaging $7,779.46.
More than $50,000 was presented in award money and scholarships to three dozen youth at the Youth Awards Ceremony and the Give Us Your Best 60 Second public speaking contest on Saturday.
The 2026 schedule will be as follows:
Friday, November 6
7:30 a.m.—The All American Junior Jersey Show, beginning with junior showmanship;
9:00 a.m.—The All American Junior Jersey Heifer Show
1:30 p.m. —The All American Junior Jersey Cow Show
6:00 p.m.—Supreme Champions for All American Junior Dairy Show
Saturday, November 7
9:00 a.m.—Youth Awards Ceremony;
11:30 a.m.—Pizza party for Jersey youth;
12:00 noon—Give Your Best 60 Seconds public speaking contest;
1:00 p.m.—Pot O’Gold Sale
3:00 p.m.—Pre-sale Social
3:30 p.m.—All American Jersey Sale
Sunday, November 8
7:30 a.m.—The All American Jersey Heifer Show;
2:00 p.m.—The National Jersey Jug Futurity
Monday, November 9
7:30 a.m.—The All American Jersey Cow Show, beginning with the Milking Winter Yearling class;
2:30 p.m.—Supreme Champion Ceremony
Executive Committee
Unaudited financial statements for 2025 showed a net gain from operations of $30,952. Total revenues were $143,013 and expenditures of $121,031 with realized and unrealized gain on securities of $9,020.
The 2026 budget was approved, based on revenues of $125,050 and expenses of $124,600.
Sponsorship fees approved for 2026 were reviewed: show class sponsorships, $300; banner-trophy sponsorships, $325; and other trophy sponsorships, $200.
Recognition levels for the event are:
• Underwriters, $10,000 and over;
• Primary Sponsors, $5,000 to $9,999;
• Chairman’s Circle, $1,000 to $4,999;
• Sustainers, $500 to $999;
• Patrons, $250 to $499; and
• Friends of the All American, contributions to $249.
Sale Committee
The All American Jersey Sale committee met and set the schedule fo the 2026 event. Both sales will be held on Saturday, November 7.
The Pot O’Gold Jersey Sale for juniors will begin at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, following the Youth Award Ceremony and the “Give Your Best 60-second Intro” public speaking contest. Pizza will be served for all youth in attendance, beginning at 11:30 a.m.
The All American Jersey Sale will be held at 3:30 p.m., with the pre-sale social beginning at 3:00 p.m. Pre-sale ceremonies will start at 3:15 p.m. Both the All American Jersey Sale and Pot O’Gold Sale will be streamed live through CowBuyer.com.
Females. Females must be recorded with a minimum Generation Count 4 and also have a Breed Base Representation (BBR) of 100. Animals should be parentage qualified. Heifers under six months of age will have the option of being sold by virtual video format.
All females must be parentage verified or have a sample submitted by sale day.
Males. If available, high-ranking genomic-tested young bulls will be offered for syndication, based on marketability. They must have a minimum Generation Count 6 with a BBR of 100 to be sold. If available, a bull that meets the same requirements as females will be offered in the live sale as a non-syndicated bull.
No animal may have a declared carrier of Limber Legs (LL) or Rectovaginal Constriction (RVC) in its three-generation pedigree. Declared carriers of BLAD, DUMPS, SMA, SDM or Holstein haplotype 1, 3, 4 or 5 by genotype test will not be accepted. Bulls selling must also be designated free of Jersey Haplotype 1 and JNS (Jersey Neuropathy and Splayed Forelimbs).
Sale commissions will be at the following rates: syndicated bulls in the All American will sell for a flat commission of 25%. The commission for females will remain at 20% on the first $10,000 of the sale price, 15% on amounts from $10,001 to $25,000, and 10% on amounts over $25,001. The sales team will have discretion to adjust commission rates for consignors with multiple lots.
Commission for absentee animals, IVF sessions and embryo lots will also be 20%. Animals remaining in the consignor’s string at the sale will be charged 15% commission, provided staff are notified at the time of cataloging.
It was recommended to sell 30-33 heifers in the Pot O’Gold Sale. The sale will be Saturday afternoon, November 9 at 1:00 p.m. following the Youth Awards Ceremony and public speaking contest. All animals for the Pot O’Gold Sale are required to sell live in Louisville at the sale.
Commission will remain at 25%, with 17% set aside for the production contest awards. Females must be a minimum Generation Count 4 with a BBR of 100 to be eligible for the sale, with all heifers genotyped and having official genomic evaluations by sale date.
Open Show
The All American Jersey Show will continue as a two-day show. It is scheduled for Sunday, November 8 at 7:30 a.m. for the heifers and Monday, November 9, at 7:30 a.m. for the cows, with the Supreme Champion ceremony being held immediately following the show.
Animals are eligible to be shown when recorded by the American Jersey Cattle Association in the Herd Register or with Generation Count 4 or greater, or by Jersey Canada with registry status of 93.75% and greater.
•The Winner and Reserve Winner of the National Jersey Jug Futurity will move to the Grand Champion class;
•Intermediate Champion will include first and second place winners from the milking winter yearling class through the junior three-year-old class (six classes represented); and
•Senior Champion class will consist of the first and second place winners from the senior three-year-old class through the lifetime cheese yield class (five classes represented).
The Premier Performance Class will continue as a leadout class. All qualified cows will be required to return to the ring for recognition or performance class premiums will be forfeited.
National Jersey Jug Futurity
A celebration of America’s 250th anniversary will be the theme for the 2026 show on Sunday, November 9, beginning at 2:00 p.m.
The committee endorsed the decision to allow owners that miss the December 31 deadline to submit nominations from January 1 to March 1 at $15 per entry. All other payments not received by the published deadlines will be refused and the animal(s) will be disqualified.
The committee continued to endorse a discount for participants making a one-time payment at nomination time. A breeder can pay a one-time fee of $55 per entry.
The Winner and Reserve Winner of the National Jersey Jug Futurity will compete in the Grand Champion class during the cow show on Monday.
The winner will earn first-place points for Premier Breeder and Premier Exhibitor. The Reserve Winner will be credited with second-place points for Premier Breeder and Premier Exhibitor. However, the Reserve Winner is eligible to be shown in her class in the open show. If shown, points for Premier Breeder and Premier Exhibitor will be determined by her placing in the open show and she will not be eligible for a championship class unless she places first or second in the class. Cows placing third through sixth in the Futurity that do not show in the open show will be credited with the appropriate points for Premier Breeder and Premier Exhibitor. In all cases, Premier Exhibitor points are awarded to the Recorded Owner for the Futurity, even if ownership changes before the open show.
Beginning in 2026, the railbird contest entry fee will be $5 per entry or five cards for $20. The proceeds will be split between the winners of the contest and the Charlene Nardone National Jersey Queen fund.
There are 457 two-year-olds eligible to make the final payment for the 2026 Futurity. Payment is due in the AJCA office no later than September 20. A total of 1,070 animals were nominated for the 2028 Futurity.
Junior Show & Activities
The All American Junior Jersey Show will be held on Friday, November 6, beginning with showmanship classes at 7:30 a.m.
Showmanship will continue to be a staggered start for the three divisions, beginning with the juniors, followed by the intermediate class midway through, and then the seniors will begin partway through the intermediate division.
The committee recommended heifer classes follow showmanship and begin at 9:00 a.m. The milking classes will follow the selection of Junior Champion at 1:30 p.m.
The eligibility and ownership rules were discussed and approved for the junior show:
Rule 1, Exhibitors. Exhibitors must be no younger than nine (9) and no older than 20 years of age as of January 1, 2026. U.S. residents must be members (junior or lifetime) of the American Jersey Cattle Association.
Rule 2, Entries. Animals are eligible when recorded by the American Jersey Cattle Association in the Herd Register or with Generation Count 4 or greater, or by Jersey Canada with registry status of 93.75% and greater.
The exhibitor must be listed as Recorded Owner on the registration certificate, either (1) as the sole owner or (2) by his/her name in joint ownership. If the joint ownership includes more than one person meeting the eligibility requirements of Rule 1 (above), one of them must be declared as the exhibitor during check-in.
Animals must be registered and/or transferred to meet one of the above ownership requirements on or before August 1, 2026. The date of registration and/or transfer is the Date Recorded printed on the registration certificate.
Rule 3, Participation. Entries must be shown by the exhibitor, except by prior written approval from NAILE. Alternate leadspersons must (1) be associated with the Herd Unit and also eligible to show by age (Rule 1), or (2) if not, be the same age or younger than the exhibitor of the animal being shown. Requests for alternate leadsperson must be submitted for approval by the NAILE dairy show superintendent on forms provided by the AJCA not later than 12:00 noon the day before the show.
No more than two (2) animals may be shown by one exhibitor in any one class. The exhibitor must lead the first entry and the second entry must be led by an NAILE approved alternate leadsperson.
Adults are not allowed to show in any case.
Rule 4, Breeder Status. In order to qualify for Premier Breeder points and Best Bred and Owned awards, the exhibitor declared at check-in must have his/her name recorded as a Breeder on the animal’s registration certificate. These awards will be made only to the individual exhibitor in the case of partnership animals.
Entry forms for Premier Junior Breeder and Premier Junior Exhibitor will be distributed at check-in. Submit forms not later than 6:00 p.m. on the day prior to the show to the Jersey show superintendent.
The Youth Awards Ceremony will be Saturday morning, November 9, at 9:00 a.m., followed by a pizza party for the juniors and the “60-second introduction” youth public speaking contest at noon.
The National Jersey Queen contest will be structured as follows:
Quiz and Interview during the All American Junior Show on Friday, November 6;
Final phase and selection of the finalists on Saturday, November 7 at the Youth Awards Ceremony.
Crowning of the National Jersey Queen on Sunday, November 8 before the start of the National Jersey Jug Futurity.
A fundraising subcommittee will continue work to develop a long-term financial plan for the National Jersey Queen program.
