But there may be a ray of light. Governor Spencer Cox and The Utah State Legislature are continuing to back an aggressive and innovative $10 million “Agri-Park” to be built just north of Nephi, Utah, and adjacent to I-15. Utah will be the first to ever launch what is an industrial park designed exclusively for agricultural businesses and farming support. The plan is to build 21st Century, highly efficient mills, processing plants, and packaging facilities to support local Utah farms. Remarkably, one industry under consideration for the Agri-Park is: logging. Many ideas are on the table, and all facilities will be focused on rebuilding commercial agricultural operations and placing them closer to Central Utah farmers.

As expensive as it is to grow and provide water to grow crops in Utah, taking harvests to market has also shaved profits razor-thin for family farms. It is this aching gap in profitability that has given birth to the vision for the nation’s first-ever Agri-Park, and it is being led by Travis Kiel, Executive Director of Richfield’s Region Six County Association. It is a cumbersome name for a well-run government agency which digs in and supports rural towns, farmers, and Utah communities where earnings are often more limited. Kiel and his Community Adviser, former Ephraim City Manager Shaun Kjar, have the privilege of pioneering the unique park. With a “build it and they will come” mentality, Shaun Kjar shares that he is already in the Master Plan phase in designing the agriculture park when it eventually sprawls across a whopping 900 acres of ground between Nephi and Mona, Utah.

“When money goes to a farmer, it moves through a community multiple times. Farmers hire workers, buy fuel and fertilizer, tools, parts and all sorts of goods in our communities. Utah needs agriculture to maintain its overall economy. That’s why the Agri-Park is crucial to the state.” Says Shaun Kjar.

Another growing priority is the demand for clean food by conscientious Utah families. Every year, the USDA and other national experts in food, nutrition and science are reporting how important it is to source food locally to preserve nutritional value, and decrease the need to fortify our foods with chemicals, colors and preservatives which are proving to impact children and adults.

“My wife and I just realized that one “fortifying” ingredient in breads known as “synthetic folic acid” was causing distinct health problems in our entire family. That’s one of many reasons we went looking to make a home in Sanpete County. We were seeking a more independent way of living, but we also discovered that we could create our own food “supply chain” right here at home. Milk, eggs, bread, and even local meats. We are putting in the work to be sure, but we have also found one secret to keeping our family healthy.” says Sanpete County resident and Tyler Rencher.

“We want to be able to rely on locally-grown, trusted food that we can buy and sell from neighbors and farmers, and it’s becoming more important to our family every day.”

Executive Director of “R-6,” Travis Kiel, has served as a community leader for over a decade and has been the steward over many state and federal projects designed to help Utah’s rural areas.

“The Agri-Park is definitely one of the most important projects we have ever undertaken. Residential encroachment is crowding our Utah farms. We have to find a balance between expansion and preservation of our critical farms and natural resources.”. says Kiel.

The forward-thinking Agri-Park project near Nephi, Utah will unite federal, state, and local funds along with private investors, all dedicated to achieving “water smart” and state of the art agricultural practices. The park will be located near I-15 Northwest of Nephi to make it easily accessible to farm vehicles and semi-trucks, to incorporate rail, and attract a local work force.

“We have to back our family farms. Farming is a historic tradition here in Utah. It’s a respected way of life. We need to continue to make farming productive and profitable and be able to guarantee families will always be able count on locally grown food and an agriculture economy. says Travis Keil.

So unique is Utah’s Agri-Park idea, that The National Association of Counties is already watching its progress. Developing a vital, cooperative, commercial agriculture community of processing plants, vegetable wash facilities, cold storage, packing and shipping operations in the center of the state could protect the future of agriculture for decades to come, and set an example for the entire country.

Within a year ground will break on the Utah Agri-Park, and not a moment to soon for Central Utah’s big farming communities. Not only could the park be a solution for farmers, but it is also expected to be a job creator in the Central Utah six-county area. County Commissioners from Sanpete, Juab, Millard, Sevier, Piute, and Wayne counties are the biggest of all supporters for this much-needed shot in the arm in Utah’s agriculture industry.

Commissioners are betting on Travis Kiel and Shaun Kjar’s strong vision for the future of Central Utah agriculture. At a time when government entities are sometimes criticized for creating bureaucracies instead of results, Utah’s Region Six is succeeding in building a private and public partnership where government is leading and delivering on an idea whose time has come.