AGRICULTURE
Utah’s new food and agriculture boss comes from long line of local farmers BY MITCH SHAW Standard-Examiner
MORGAN — Logan Wilde comes from a family that has farmed Utah land since the 1800s. The lifelong Morgan County resident says he’ll lean heavily on that legacy as he leads the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food. Wilde was tabbed commissioner of the department in March, replacing Kerry Gibson, the former Weber County commissioner who stepped down from the post on Jan. 14 to make a bid for the U.S. House of Representatives. Wilde served as acting commissioner of the department immediately after Gibson resigned, until his official appointment in March. The new commissioner’s ancestors settled in Croydon more than 150 years ago, running a farm with mostly chickens, but also a few cows and a sheep. As the family grew over the years, so did the ranching operation, Wilde says. What was primarily a chicken farm morphed into a bustling sheep and cattle ranch. Today, the operation has over 200 head of cattle and 2,600 head of sheep. Wilde serves as managing partner of the operation, which is called M.R. Wilde and Sons. “Sometimes my wife gets mad at me,” Wilde says. “I come home from working all day in Salt Lake (City) and then go to work on the ranch. But it’s what I love to do and I think that will come in handy (as DoFA commissioner).” Wilde also has an extensive background in public service. He was elected to serve in the Utah House of Representatives in 2014 and was a member of the Weber-Morgan Board of Health and the Morgan County Council. He says his path to public service began in his youth
PHOTO SUPPLIED, LOGAN WILDE
People are realizing, it’s important to know where your food is coming from and to keep that supply chain intact. Sometimes you might take (fresh food) for granted, but that food doesn’t just magically appear on your table.” — Logan Wilde, Commissioner, Utah Department of Agriculture and Food when his uncle, a member of the Morgan County Farm Bureau, “volun-told” him to serve as Morgan County’s Young Farmer for the bureau. “I felt I didn’t have the time or understanding to serve effectively,” Wilde says. “But he refused to hear any of my objections — leaving the necessary books on my kitchen counter and a reminder of when the first meeting would be held. He walked out while reiterating,
‘You are the new Young Farmer for the Morgan County Farm Bureau.’” According to their website, the state’s department of Agriculture and Food dates back to 1921 and is one of Utah’s oldest government agencies. The department oversees dozens of programs that promote the healthy growth of agriculture, the conservation of natural resources and the protection of the state’s food supply. The organization inspects
more than 4,000 retail stores across the state and the many food processing plants for food quality and safety and fair pricing. Wilde says some of the industry’s most pressing issues have been highlighted during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Disruptions to the country’s meat supply occurred when workers in rendering plants across the Midwest contracted coronavirus, forcing the closure of some of those plants and slowing production. Wilde said protecting the state’s food supply is more important today than it ever has been. “People are realizing, it’s important to know where your food is coming from and to keep that supply chain intact,” he said. “Sometimes you might take (fresh food) for granted, but that food doesn’t just magically appear on your table.” Western Wasatch - July 2020 29
