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7 LONG TITLE
8 General Description:
9 This bill creates a requirement for the Department of Agriculture and Food to study
10 issues related to local food.
11 Highlighted Provisions:
12 This bill:
13 ▸ defines terms;
14 ▸ requires the Department of Agriculture and Food (the department) to study the
15 barriers and gaps related to increasing the availability of local food in the state; and
16 ▸ requires the department to report the findings and recommendations of the study to
17 the Natural Resources, Agriculture, and the Environment Interim Committee.
18 Money Appropriated in this Bill:
19 None
20 Other Special Clauses:
21 None
22 Utah Code Sections Affected:
23 ENACTS:
24 4-2-1001, Utah Code Annotated 1953
25 4-2-1002, Utah Code Annotated 1953
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27 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
28 Section 1. Section 4-2-1001 is enacted to read:
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30 4-2-1001. Definitions.
31 (1) "Committee" means the Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Environment Interim
32 Committee.
33 (2) "Local food" means an agricultural product that is:
34 (a) produced, processed, and distributed for sale or consumption within the state; and
35 (b) sold to an end consumer within the state.
36 Section 2. Section 4-2-1002 is enacted to read:
37 4-2-1002. Local food study.
38 (1) (a) The department shall conduct a study on the barriers and gaps related to
39 increasing the availability of local food in the state, including issues related to:
40 (i) the intra-state food supply chain;
41 (ii) alternative and specialty crop production; and
42 (iii) the agricultural workforce.
43 (b) The department shall coordinate with stakeholders to conduct the study described in
44 Subsection (1)(a).
45 (2) The study described in Subsection (1) shall:
46 (a) compare the production value of alternative crop types and the economic impact to
47 the state and to producers of producing the alternative crop types;
48 (b) research the natural resource, infrastructure, and financial implications associated
49 with changing from animal-feed crops to direct-to-consumer crops;
50 (c) research the barriers to entry associated with careers in agriculture by reviewing:
51 (i) current challenges;
52 (ii) available resources;
53 (iii) programs in other states that support individuals interested in pursuing careers in
54 agriculture;
55 (iv) opportunities for new agricultural producers to use the expertise of existing
56 agricultural producers; and
57 (v) the potential for creating a small farm incubator program;
58 (d) research gaps in the state's food supply chain with respect to local food, including:
59 (i) aggregation;
60 (ii) distribution;
61 (iii) storage;
62 (iv) refrigeration; and
63 (v) processing; and
64 (e) propose potential funding solutions to address the issues identified by the
65 department's research under Subsection (2)(d), including recommendations for:
66 (i) current state and federal money available;
67 (ii) potential grant programs; and
68 (iii) coordinating funding from state and federal sources.
69 (3) (a) The department shall report to the committee at or before the committee's
70 October 2024 interim meeting.
71 (b) The report described in Subsection (3)(a) shall include:
72 (i) research findings related to each study item; and
73 (ii) policy solutions related to each study item.
74 (c) The report described in Subsection (3)(a) may include recommendations for
75 legislation and legislative appropriations.
76 (4) If the committee recommends legislative action based on the department's report
77 and recommendations described in Subsection (3), the committee shall prepare legislation for
78 consideration by the Legislature in the 2025 General Session.
79 Section 3. Effective date.
80 This bill takes effect on May 1, 2024.