SALT LAKE CITY -- Ron Gibson worries that the family business he runs with his brother will not be around when his children are old enough to take over.
Gibson, of West Weber, runs a dairy farm with his brother, Weber County Commissioner Kerry Gibson.
"Farmers and ranchers are going to quit when it is no longer profitable to operate," Ron Gibson said. "Farms have to be profitable. We don't just do this because we love it."
Ron Gibson is president of the Weber County Farm Bureau and, with farmers and ranchers from across Utah, attended a luncheon with lawmakers Thursday at the state Capitol.
Gibson said West Weber has a great future for farming and Utah has the "perfect climate, perfect weather and perfect soil for farming."
But with new federal regulations every year and fewer people available to work in the fields, farming could become a much more expensive business to run, he said.
"We have to stop making it so difficult that the new generation coming up won't want to (farm)," said Randy Parker, chief executive officer of the Utah Farm Bureau.
Parker said the average age of Utah farmers and ranchers is 60 and the younger generation is not showing any signs of entering a business that requires long hours and provides little pay.
Parker said Box Elder and Millard are the top agriculture counties in the state, with Utah County still playing a role in agriculture.
Parker said a country that can no longer feed its residents soon loses its freedom when it has to depend on other nations.
The average resident spends 10 percent to 11 percent of income on food, Parker said. Utah is home to about 16,000 farms and ranches.
In 2011, the cost of farm production is predicted to be 8.6 percent higher than 2010, according to the Utah Farm Bureau.
Out of every retail dollar spent on food, the farmer or rancher receives 20 cents. In 1980, farmers and ranchers received 32 cents of every retail dollar spent.
In 1990, one farmer produced enough food to feed 129 people, according to a report by the Utah Farm Bureau. In 2010, one farmer produced enough food to feed 155 people.
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