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Trade is making Utah the crossroads of the world

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Trade is making Utah the crossroads of the world


Utah, the crossroads of the world?

A strong case for that title can be made.

Among the accolades the state has received in recent years, including the title as the nation’s fastest-growing state during the previous decade, this one might catch people by surprise. Crossroads of the West, yes, but the world? However, the numbers don’t lie.

Utah ranks 16th among states in terms of per capita export values, despite its population ranking only 30th. That is according to Natalie Gochnour, associate dean for the University of Utah’s David Eccles School of Business and director of the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute.

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She also noted that Utah has the third-highest per capita export ranking among Western states, which is higher even than California.

The Gardner Policy Institute reports that Utah companies exported a combined $17.4 billion in 2023, which supported almost 72,000 jobs and generated about $4 billion in earnings. This also added $8 billion to Utah’s economy and $16.7 billion to the state’s gross industry sales output.

Add to that the fact that Utah exported to 200 nations last year, including $7.2 billion (most of it unwrought gold) to its No. 1 trading partner, the United Kingdom. Canada and Mexico were second and third on the export list.

Those are a lot of numbers to digest. But what they add up to is this: When it comes to trade, an impressive amount takes place at this crossroads. And that volume of trade leads to influence.

Small wonder, then, that Utah has attracted enough attention to also attract several marquee names to a Crossroads of the World Summit, sponsored by World Trade Center Utah and Zions Bank and held at Salt Lake City’s Grand America hotel last week.

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That list included former U.S. President George W. Bush, former Mexican President Vicente Fox and former Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. It’s hard to attract a lineup like that without bona fides.

Add to this the lineups Utah Valley University has attracted in recent years: a China Summit that included former ambassador to China Jon Huntsman Jr., current ambassador Nicholas Burns and a list of experts and journalists; a United Nations conference that drew many U.N. delegates and featured the introduction of 75 scholarly papers; and a conference on Ukraine that featured consul generals from Ukraine, Poland, Romania and Spain, as well as a video appearance by Ryan Guirlinger of the U.S. Department of State.

Utah’s crossroads, then, is expanding to include serious international policy discussions as well as trade.

But it would be wrong to underestimate the value of the trade on its own. In addition to gold, Utah exports a lot of computer/electronic parts, chemicals and miscellaneous manufacturing commodities. However, the state’s best asset may be something homegrown — its people.

During last week’s summit, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox told of a conversation he had recently with a well-known hedge fund billionaire he declined to identify. The billionaire told him Utah’s strongest asset was a population of smart, hardworking people who prioritize their families.

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“Those are Utah values and they used to be American values,” Cox said. “Utah is what America used to be and, I hope, what it can be again.”

The president of World Trade Center Utah, Jonathan Freedman, characterized the summit as trying to explore international trade as a place “where diplomacy and business intersect.” That process naturally includes a cooperative spirit between government and business. The trade center, he said, offers “insights to place Utah companies at the front of global commerce.”

Not all the news concerning trade was good, however. Fox, the former Mexican president, spoke about the challenges concerning migration, which has traditionally contributed mightily to the U.S. economy. Mexico, he said, is approaching a labor crisis and may not be able to provide the labor Utah and other states depend on.

This echoes the concerns many demographers have about a diminishing birth rate internationally. It could affect Utah and other Western states as well.

Fox also warned about tyrannical dictators in some Latin American countries. His answer to this is greater cooperation between Mexico, Canada and the United States. That’s a good recipe for solving a lot of problems.

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And that greater cooperation can mean only greater trade coming through Utah, the crossroads of the world.



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Jazz Injury Report Rules Out 7 Players vs. Raptors

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Jazz Injury Report Rules Out 7 Players vs. Raptors


The Utah Jazz are set to face off against the Toronto Raptors to kick off their new week for their second of two meetings across this season, where the Jazz in particular have ruled out a total of seven names on their injury report.

Here’s what the injury landscape looks like for the Jazz and Raptors rolling into the night:

Utah Jazz Injury Report

OUT – Isaiah Collier (hamstring)

OUT – Keyonte George (hamstring)

OUT – Jaren Jackson Jr. (knee)

OUT – Walker Kessler (shoulder)

OUT – Lauri Markkanen (hip)

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OUT – Jusuf Nurkic (nose)

OUT – Blake Hinson (two-way)

QUESTIONABLE – Cody Williams (shoulder)

It’s much of the same from what the Jazz have been dealing with across the past couple of weeks.

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Keyonte George and Lauri Markkanen still remain out with their minor injuries that they’ve suffered past the All-Star break, and Walker Kessler, Jaren Jackson Jr., and Jusuf Nurkic remain out for the year with their respective season-ending injuries.

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However, the two names that stick out on this injury report against the Raptors in particular are their two first round picks from the 2024 NBA Draft; Isaiah Collier who’s out with a hamstring injury, while Cody Williams is the latest to be among those listed with a shoulder issue.

For Collier, it’s set to be a third-straight game that he’s been out due to what’s been labeled hamstring soreness, and thus leave the Jazz without both their starting and second-string point guard for the night.

That could lead to either two-way signee Elijah Harkless getting a starting nod for a second straight game following his elevation against the Philadelphia 76ers, or that spot could go to 10-day signing Kennedy Chandler, who played 35 minutes in that same game for a career-high 19 points in his team debut.

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Mar 21, 2026; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Jazz guard Kennedy Chandler (0) warms up before the game against the Philadelphia 76ers at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images | Rob Gray-Imagn Images

As for Williams, he’s been downgraded to questionable for the action due to shoulder soreness; something that could leave him still able to go before tip-off, but remains to be seen based on how he feels before gametime.

The second-year forward has been on a hot streak as of late. In his past five games, he’s averaged an impressive 19.6 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 4.0 assists, shooting 50.0% from the field throughout.

If Williams is out of the mix, it’ll leave their frontcourt a bit more shorthanded from what they’ve been used to across the past couple of weeks, and might lead to even more minutes for guys like 10-day signee Bez Mbeng and two-way big man Oscar Tshiebwe to fill those minutes.

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Toronto Raptors Injury Report

OUT – Immanuel Quickley (foot)

OUT – Jakob Poeltl (rest)

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QUESTIONABLE – Collin Murray-Boyles (illness)

When it comes to the Raptors, they’ll be without a couple of guys on their roster, Immanuel Quickley who’s slated to miss out due to a foot injury, while Jakob Poeltl won’t be playing for Toronto’s second leg of a back-to-back following their previous battle against the Denver Nuggets on Sunday.

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Collin Murray-Boyles, on the other hand, has been upgraded to questionable against the Jazz with an illness after previously being out against the Nuggets over the weekend.

Tip-off between the Jazz and Raptors lands at 9 p.m. MT in the Delta Center, where Toronto will have their chance at a 2-0 series sweep over Utah depending on the results.



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POST-GAME: André Tourigny 3.22.26 | Utah Mammoth

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POST-GAME: André Tourigny 3.22.26 | Utah Mammoth


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Utah chef’s cake didn’t have enough booze, Food Network judges say

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Utah chef’s cake didn’t have enough booze, Food Network judges say


After hitting a snag and suffering through what he called “the biggest embarrassment” on national TV, chef Adalberto Diaz managed to narrowly avoid elimination during the premiere episode of Food Network’s “The Ultimate Baking Championship.”

“I’ll make you proud,” Diaz told the judges when the show revealed he would be claiming the final spot in the top 10 and moving forward in the competition.

But during the second episode of the season, the Utah chef behind the Salt Lake City bakery Fillings & Emulsions once again found himself in a far from ideal situation.

Adalberto Diaz faces criticism on ‘The Ultimate Baking Championship’

After an intense first episode that eliminated six of the top pastry chefs from across the country, Diaz found himself in the competition’s top 10.

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The first challenge of the episode tasked the remaining bakers with putting a modern twist on a classic dessert. Diaz did OK in this round, creating strawberry shortcake canapés that put him in a three-way tie for fifth place with 11 points out of 20.

But like the premiere episode, things took a turn for the worse during the second challenge.

Diaz and his fellow bakers each had 2.5 hours to create a geometric layered mousse cake. The Utah chef’s specific assignment was to give his cake a tropical and boozy theme — something he said he felt confident about given his Cuban heritage.

The chef went to work creating a blueberry mojito gelée cake with mango mousse, topped off with a chocolate hibiscus flower. He gave it an ocean look with dark blue coloring.

In a blind taste test, celebrity guest judge and pastry chef Amaury Guichon said Diaz’s final product wasn’t the right interpretation for a boozy dessert. There wasn’t enough booze in the cake, both Guichon and judge Duff Goldman said. Guichon also criticized the amount of dark blue coloring Diaz used and said it wasn’t a natural look.

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“This cannot be served in a restaurant,” Guichon said.

Chef Adalberto Diaz Labrada puts a batch of macarons into an oven in the kitchen of Fillings & Emulsions in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025. | Brice Tucker, Deseret News

Diaz, who was watching the judging on a screen in another room, became emotional as he heard the feedback.

He told his fellow pastry chef and competitor Juan Gutierrez that it hurt to get that kind of criticism on the show because as an older competitor, he doesn’t have as much time for improvement in his career as the younger chefs.

“We should be already there,” a visibly upset Diaz told Gutierrez.

After all of the judging, host Jesse Palmer revealed that Diaz was once again among the bottom competitors for the round. And, just like the premiere episode, the Utah chef ended up narrowly avoiding elimination.

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Diaz received a 15 out of 30 for his cake, bringing his cumulative score for the episode to 26 points.

Oralia Perez, a pastry chef based in Houston, got eliminated from the competition with a cumulative score of 25.

Contestants Sarah Craichy, Christopher Teixeira, Rochelle Cooper, Clement Le Deore, Lasheeda Perry, Molly Coen, Robert Gonzalez, Oralia Perez, Juan Gutierrez, Arlety Estéves, Florencia Breda, Steven Weiss, Casey Doody, Cesar Sajulan, Julian Belon and Adalberto Diaz on Season 1 of “The Ultimate Baking Championship.” | Rob Pryce

Now, Diaz moves forward as one of nine remaining chefs competing for $50,000 in “The Ultimate Baking Championship.”

The show airs Monday nights on Food Network, with episodes available for streaming the following day on Discovery+ and HBO Max.

Who is Adalberto Diaz?

Diaz’s colorful macarons and fruit desserts are on display at Fillings & Emulsions in Salt Lake City — which the chef has described as an “eclectic Latin bakery with a French flair.”

“The last 12 years I have invested everything I have, everything, into my pastry shop,” Diaz said during “The Ultimate Baking Championship” premiere episode, which included footage of his new location that features bright murals painted by his brother to highlight their Cuban heritage.

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Chef Adalberto Diaz Labrada hands customer Cameron Dryg a cup of coffee at Fillings & Emulsions in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025. | Brice Tucker, Deseret News

“When I win this competition, it will be a dream come true and that money is gonna go straight into my business and my amazing team of chefs and pastry chefs,” he said during the premiere episode. “I want to make sure that we make it out of these harsh economic times.”

Diaz emigrated from Cuba in 2000 and made a home in Utah, where he quickly began working in the food industry. He worked at a few places around Salt Lake City over the next decade, and earned the American Culinary Federation’s title of Pastry Chef of the Year in 2012. He opened Fillings & Emulsions the following year, as the Deseret News reported.

The chef’s appearance on “The Ultimate Baking Championship” comes on the heels of being nominated as a semifinalist for the prestigious James Beard award for outstanding pastry chef or baker.

“I am part of this community and this community has welcomed me to be part of it, and even bigger, this country welcomed me when I came here, and gave me an opportunity to be more where I am today,” Diaz told the Deseret News last year after his James Beard nomination. “And I wish that opportunity was given to more people because you don’t know how they would change the world.”



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