Panguitch meat processor named ‘Utah Rural Small Business of the Year’

Composite image, with background an aerial photo of Nay's Meats in Panguitch, Utah, and inset photo of owner Cole "Tug" Nay. | Image courtesy of Cole "Tug" Nay, St. George News / Cedar City News

CEDAR CITY — A Panguitch meat processor is scheduled to be recognized as the “Utah Rural Small Business of the Year” later this week by the Utah District of the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Undated aerial drone photo of Nay’s Meats, Panguitch, Utah | Image courtesy of Cole “Tug” Nay, St. George News / Cedar City News

Cole “Tug” Nay, owner and operator of Nay’s Meats, is scheduled to receive the award in Salt Lake City on Friday as National Small Business Week (May 1-7) draws to a close.

According to a recent news release announcing the awards, Utah currently has more than 300,000 small businesses, just a handful of which are being recognized this week. See the list of the six award recipients at the bottom of the story.

“These few that we recognize this year with a coveted National Small Business Week award should be proud,” Marla Trollan, SBA’s Utah District director, said in the release.

Joni Anderson, director of Southern Utah University’s Business Center and regional manager of Utah Small Business Development Center, told Cedar City News that Nay’s Meats is well-deserving of the recognition.

“Nay’s Meats contributes to the economic vitality of Garfield County and of Utah, and they are a worthy recipient of the Utah Rural Small Business of the Year award,” she said. “It’s a privilege to be able to work with and assist local small business owners, and it’s especially exciting to help recognize such a deserving business and business owner.”

Undated photo of Cole “Tug” Nay, owner and operator of Nay’s Meats, Panguitch, Utah | Image courtesy of Cole “Tug” Nay, St. George News / Cedar City News

Nay is the fourth-generation owner of Nay’s Meats, continuing after working with both his grandfather and father. The business, which is now in its 70th year of operation, is located at 2122 N. U.S. 89, Panguitch.

In a phone interview last week, Nay told Cedar City News that he applied last year for a Meat and Poultry Inspection Readiness grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, with the assistance of Anderson and SUU Small Business Resource Center Director Craig Isom.

Nay said the grant is designed to help small processors reach a level where they can help fill gaps in the food supply chain.

“When COVID hit, the major slaughterhouses got shut down,” he noted.

“When I applied for the grant, my big thing was, let’s help the producers out, give them a higher price for their animals,” he said. “It goes from them to me, and then to the consumers … let’s give consumers lower-priced product.”

Last November, Nay said he received the $200,000 USDA grant to help expand his business.

“Right now, we’re processing 20 beef a week,” he said. “This new building that we’re going to build is going to make it so we can process 70 to 75 a week.”

“Once I build the shop, I’m going to be the only modernized federally inspected kill facility within 250 miles that has a lead time to get an animal processed in less than four months,” Nay added, noting that his current clientele spans not just the Southern Utah but other areas of Utah and parts of neighboring states, including Southern Nevada, Northern Arizona, and Western Colorado.

An earlier expansion of the Nay’s Meats shop, Panguitch, Utah, January 2020 | Photo courtesy of Nay’s Meats via Facebook, St. George News / Cedar City News

Nay, who currently has five full-time and three part-time employees, said he plans to add at least five and probably more full-time workers as the business grows.

Garfield County’s economic development board even approved a $30,000 grant to help out, he said.

“It’s going to grow the economy, not only by helping create jobs, but it’s going to give local and regional producers an avenue to make more money as well,” he said.

Nay said that when he applied for the USDA grant, he pointed out the high demand for meat processors.

“I mean, butcher shops aren’t starting up left and right,” he said. “They’re going out of business. When I met with the board of directors, somebody on the committee asked me, ‘Why are they going out of business?’ And I said, ‘Because it’s damn hard work, and nobody wants to work anymore.’”

But Nay, who has spent most of his life in and around the butcher shop, is no stranger to the rigors of the job, having learned the ropes from his grandfather William “Junior” Nay, who died in 2009, and his father Martin Nay, who died in 2017.

Smoked turkeys at Nay’s Meats, Panguitch, Utah, date not specified. | Photo courtesy of Nay’s Meats via Facebook, St. George News / Cedar City News

“This is what I live for,” he said. “From when my grandpa had it, my dad had it and he bumped it up a step. And then I’ve grown the business immensely from my dad. And now, you know, I’m only 30 years old, and if I can make it even that much better for my kid, then, absolutely.”

Nay said back when he was 17, he asked his dad for some money to purchase the equipment so that he could make smoked jerky. When his father tried to dissuade him from the idea, Nay went and took out a bank loan for $1,700.

“Six months later, my dad told me, ‘I should have invested in that because you’re making good money doing jerky,’” Nay recalled. “Within six months, I had that loan paid off.”

Jerky continues to be a highly popular option for people who want their deer, elk and other big game processed, he said, adding that various flavors of jerky and among the top-selling items at the Nay’s Meats retail shop. The storefront also specializes in smoking turkeys every Thanksgiving for customers who don’t want to cook their own.

Nay said that when Anderson first called him to tell him he’d won the award, he didn’t fully realize its significance.

“At the time, I didn’t understand how big of a deal it really was,” he said. “I’ve talked to a few people since then and I’m just now starting to understand.”

One of the trailers used by Nay’s Meats for deliveries, Panguitch, Utah, date not specified. | Photo courtesy of Nay’s Meats via Facebook, St. George News / Cedar City News

Anderson said for Nay’s business to essentially double its workforce by adding an anticipated five to 10 high-paying jobs as it expands, is big news for Panguitch and Garfield County, which currently has the third highest unemployment rate among all the counties in the state. 

Anderson also noted that the Southern Utah area continues to be a favorable place for small businesses to start up and thrive; she said it fared extremely well in WalletHub’s recent nationwide listing of “Best and Worst Cities to Start a Business,” with St. George topping the list, Washington City coming second and Cedar City ranking fourth.

Kaden Figgins, Garfield County’s director of planning and economic development, spoke highly of the positive impact that Nay’s Meats has had and is expected to have on the local economy.

“One of the things that I’m most excited about will be, where he’s federally certified, not only can he sell over the counter, but he can also sell to all of the local grocery stores and restaurants,” Figgins said. “It literally goes from the local ranches to the meat processing facility to the restaurants, and it never leaves our county.”

Figgins lauded Nay’s Meats for creating year-round jobs that aren’t dependent on tourism. 

“As you know, with the pandemic, we saw how fragile the tourism economy can be,” he added.

Announcement from Utah District of U.S. Small Business Administration highlighting the 2022 National Small Business Week award recipients, St. George News / Cedar City News

“It seems like everybody wins on this one,” Figgins added. “It’s a tremendous project.”

Nay, Anderson and Figgins all said they are planning to attend Friday’s festivities, which are scheduled to take place starting at 11 a.m. at the Marriott City Center, 220 S. State Street, Salt Lake City.


2022 National Small Business Week Utah Small Business Awards

  • Utah Small Business of the Year: Red Iguana, Salt Lake City (Lucy Cardenas and Bill Coker).
  • Utah Small Business Exporter of the Year: Eco Green, North Salt Lake (Andres Salazar).
  • Utah Woman-owned Small Business of the Year: Green Light Booking, Pleasant Grove (Sally Johnson).
  • Utah Minority-owned Small Business of the Year: Solid Ground, Provo (Joel Harris and Parker Bennett).
  • Utah Veteran-owned Small Business of the Year: Haight Bey and Associates, West Haven (Aliahu “Alli” Bey).
  • Utah Rural Small Business of the Year: Nay’s Meats, Panguitch (Martin Cole “Tug” Nay).
Cole “Tug” Nay of Panguitch is awarded “Utah Rural Small Business of the Year” during ceremony in downtown Salt Lake City, Utah, May 6, 2022 | Photo courtesy of Kay Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2022, all rights reserved.

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