With the novel coronavirus disrupting food supply chains and skyrocketing unemployment, it has not been an easy few months for Utah’s farmers and ranchers, nor for residents who are already struggling with food insecurity. The Utah Farm Bureau Federation (UFBF), an independent, non-governmental organization of farm and ranch members, took note. On May 7, UFBF launched the … [Read more...]
RAZZZZZ … Berries!
The Tagge family expands their fruit selection Raspberries, aka “razzleberries,” should actually be called “dazzleberries” because of the way their red nubs of flavor dazzle the taste buds. But this summer delight is not an easy picking. Raspberries are fragile, requiring care and cultivation. Thayne and Cari Tagge are hoping their efforts will result in some of the best … [Read more...]
Frei’s Fruit Market
Roadside market peddles produce for 63 years For 63 years, the Frei family has operated their open-air fruit market on Old Highway 91 in Santa Clara, Utah. Despite new roadways and changing consumers, Frei’s Fruit Market has persisted and evolved into a multi-generation family tradition that celebrates the bounty of the Beehive State. It started back in 1956 when most … [Read more...]
Fertile soil, the Soil Food Web, and High Desert Soilworks
The science of soil management Fertile soil is imperative for any successful farmer or grower. The Soil Food Web is the colony of organisms living in the soil. The food web is a complex living system that interacts with the environment, plants, and animals. When an agricultural town with a population of less than 300 turns out in high numbers for a workshop on soil … [Read more...]
Farm land or house lots?
Cache Valley, Utah finds solutions Suburbs march into farmlands cul-de-sac by cul-de-sac. But in Cache Valley the advance has slowed. When Nibley residents Boyd and Sheri Schiess look out across the acres of agricultural land surrounding their home, they see an uninterrupted view of the Wellsville Mountains, a carbon sink of rich, fertile soil, and their great-grandchildren's … [Read more...]
Ferguson Fruit Orchard
Ferguson Fruit Orchard—As sweet cherry trees begin to produce fruit in late May and June, farmers across Utah are crossing their fingers that the sporadic spring frosts are finished for the year. This is also the time of year when Bill James, owner of the 100-acre Ferguson Fruit Orchard in Santaquin for 44 years, takes stock of his own, slightly different crop: Tart … [Read more...]
Bangerter Farms update: “I can guarantee the land will never be anything but a farm.”
Legal change keeps the Bangerter's farmland productive A year after Farmington granted agricultural protection for the Bangerter family farm, a 22-acre plot of farmland, and ended any effort to put soccer fields on the site, the city’s economic development director still receives pleas to leave the property alone. Brigham Mellor says he gets about one email a week from people … [Read more...]
Every farmer is a gambler, every gardener is a believer
Thank a farmer Every farmer is a gambler, every gardener is a believer—he or she is betting that tiny seeds buried in the ground will bring forth a bounty of crops. To closely watch a plant grow strong throughout the months and then see flowers transformed into fruits and vegetables, is miraculous. It humbles one into realizing there is a provident power in the … [Read more...]
Snuck Farm: Ethics and Agriculture Transcend Generations
Page Westover started Snuck Farm in Pleasant Grove in 2015 on land that her grandparents inherited from their grandparents. From the beginning she wanted it to be something different. She says, “I’ve always had a love of nature and good food. I went to Utah State University and majored in nutrition with an emphasis in dietetics.” After working in her field for more than 10 … [Read more...]
Bangerter Family Farm Wins Zoning Battle for Farmland Usage
Alan Bangerter is no stranger to moving his farming operations in the name of “progress,” which usually comes in the form of freeways built on top of and replacing fertile farm ground. The Legacy of Legacy In 1999 UDOT moved the main Bangerter family farm (30 acres that they bought in the 1970s). The farm was located in the intended path of the Legacy Parkway , so … [Read more...]