RALEIGH, N.C. – North Carolina's agriculture commissioner on Wednesday said the state fair will return after a one-year hiatus.

During his annual State of Agriculture address Wednesday morning, Steve Troxler said conditions had improved enough to allow organizers to resume the fair as scheduled.

“We're going to have a state fair this year,” he exclaimed. “So, what I'm encouraging you to do is to go out and get your vaccinations as soon as they are available to you, so that we can have a safe state fair and a record attendance at the state fair.”

The 2020 fair was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, prompting organizers to sell T-shirts with a modified state fair logo reading, “So Un-Fair.”

The 2021 N.C. State Fair is scheduled to last between Oct. 14 and Oct. 24.​