Wyoming
A Decade In, Wyoming’s Food Freedom Law Opens Markets For Mom-And-Pop Producers
RIVERTON — Walking into the Fremont Local Market is a bit like walking into a fantasy world.
On one shelf, Law of the Homestead has sourdough bread made from an ancient Wyoming-grown wheat called Einkorn and a sourdough starter that traces its lineage back to the Basque shepherds of pre-Columbian Spain.
On another shelf, Lost Cabin offers bags of single-origin coffee hand-roasted in the Big Horns, inviting buyers to get lost in their love for coffee.
Whitt’s End pie fillings range from peach and blueberry to sweet cherry, Yellowstone Spice Co. offers a Wyoming-inspired spice rub for steaks, and JV Essentials has a range of unique barbecue sauces like its sweet huckleberry.
The creativity is not limited to food products, though. There are “Unpaper” towels made of two-ply flannel cotton to replace paper towels, fruit-flavored smoking chips, and Papa Dave’s bath soaps in a range of clean, fresh scents that would make lemony-fresh Mr. Clean jealous.
In all, Fremont Local Market features 90 Wyoming producers with a range of different products, all under one roof in one store. It is an explosion of Cowboy State creativity, and it’s not just happening in Riverton.
There are now 13 of these year-round farmers markets offering local, Wyoming-made products to shoppers. They can be found in Casper, Gillette, Sheridan, Green River and beyond.
And every one of them boasts dozens of producers, all with one-of-a-kind products that just can’t be found anywhere else.
From Side Hustle To Main Hustle
Most of these producers start very small, store manager Morgan Doyle told Cowboy State Daily.
It was a couple of loaves of bread, a few bunches of basil, a handful of bath soaps — like a turtle just poking its head out for a quick peep at the sun.
But soon, most find their way out of their shells, and they’re back every day with an armload of new product to fill up their quickly emptied shelf space.
While many of the producers at these year-round farmers market-style shopping centers just want a little side hustle for some pocket change, some have found ways to move their side hustle into a much bigger main hustle, like High Country Fungus.
Owned by Daniel Stewart, the business was one of two home-grown Wyoming businesses recently selected to attend the Fancy Food Show in Las Vegas, North America’s largest specialty food show. Red Pony Salsa is the other business.
About 17,000 or so retail store and restaurant owners go to the Fancy Food Show in Las Vegas every year to find their next bestseller.
Stewart credits Fremont Local Market for providing a platform — in his case, a small wooden shelf available for less than $50 — that made it easier for him to stretch and grow his business.
“We had a lot of customers who weren’t able to meet up with us on Saturdays,” he said. “Or, you know, come to a market on Wednesdays. So having that option of being able to put our products on a shelf like that was extremely beneficial.”
Stewart hopes to gain statewide, or eventually even national, distribution for his selection of mushroom drink mixes, which include hot cocoa, chai, coffee, as well as a straight mushroom blend.
Making Chocolate Chip Cookies Great Again
An easier, less expensive on-ramp for Cowboy State entrepreneurs was part of the vision behind Wyoming’s 2015 Food Freedom Act, which is almost 10 years old.
The legislation was championed by former state Rep. Tyler Lindholm, who told Cowboy State Daily that he felt things had just gotten too complicated at the time and it shouldn’t be so difficult for neighbors to sell each other a chocolate chip cookie.
“It was just nuts,” Lindholm said. “The reality is, when you look at foodborne illnesses at the CDC and those types of things, a majority of these foodborne illnesses come from USDA-inspected items, particularly leafy green-type items and sprouts.”
Tyler, who is a rancher from Crook County, jokingly said he tells his son to stay away from lettuce and spinach and just stick to meat and potatoes.
But in all seriousness, allowing small mom-and-pop shops to get a start was exactly what he had envisioned, and to see how much creativity is being unleashed across the state is kind of “rad,” he said.
It’s also vindicating, given how he was vilified in the early days of the Food Freedom Act.
“I woke up in the morning after that bill first passed the House to an editorial in the Casper Star-Tribune just excoriating me and talking about how there’s going to be dead children,” Lindholm said. “And I’m a dad, and I was like, ‘I don’t want to kill children. What the hell are these people talking about?’”
No Tidal Wave Of Death
Since passing in 2015, Wyoming’s Food Freedom Act has become a model for other states that have added their own food freedom laws.
It has been expanded a few times in 2017, 2020 and more recently in 2023. The additions allowed ranchers to sell beef direct to consumer in Wyoming, buy eggs from producers and, most recently, buy raw milk from dairy producers.
The latter has led to a few cases of illnesses, according to the Wyoming Department of Health.
“In 2023, we had a large increase reported cases of campylobacter, salmonellosis and Shiga toxin-producing E. Coli (STEC), linked with drinking raw milk sold under food freedom laws,” Wyoming Department of Health spokeswoman Kim Deti told Cowboy State Daily. “We can’t tell you how much of that increase is explained by the population generally drinking more raw milk, or because people are more willing to tell us about their milk consumption because it is legal.”
A cluster of illnesses last fall in the northwest part of the state linked with raw milk did cause hospitalization for two children, Deti added.
That’s not an outcome anyone likes to see, Lindholm acknowledged, but he takes it as a win that the laws he championed in 2015 haven’t resulted in the tidal wave of death he’d been warned would ensue.
In fact, other than some instances of illness traced back to raw milk sales, there haven’t been any illnesses traced to canned pickles, unique cakes and cookies, breads, salsas and the like, nor even to ranch meat or eggs sold direct to consumer, despite hundreds of such sales over the past nine years.
Certainly, nothing like the dozens of multistate investigations into illnesses traced back to things like lettuces and leafy greens.
Lindholm feels vindicated by that as well.
“People are willing to pay money for these things, too,” he said. “They want to support local people. Walmart could beat them on price all day, but these guys want to support the people in their community.”
Saving Main Street
It’s difficult to track the impact of Wyoming’s Food Freedom Act, because the law was intentionally set up to not require registration for those operating under its umbrella.
But Fremont Local Foods Board President Steven Doyle has seen the impact locally, and it’s significant.
“We were told this would be very difficult to do here in Riverton,” he told Cowboy State Daily. “But the support here has been great, and we are bringing people to Main Street.”
He knows that’s something that would have never happened without the Food Freedom Act, even if it did take a pandemic to shake up people’s buying habits a bit.
Maureen Tescher, owner of the Milk House in Casper, sees similar trends with her store, which she started during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Demand for custom canvas covers for boats and the like fell by the wayside at the time, she recalled, and she needed a way to keep her doors open.
Likewise, the producers who started in her store needed a way to keep their rents paid and their lives going.
“We started with five or six producers, including me,” she said. “And we’re actually up to 65 full-time producers now, and another I think about 10 others who are seasonal.”
Some of her producers have success stories similar to that of High Country Fungus, where side hustles have become main hustles.
“We’ve got some bakers in here that started out with just little home kitchens who are bringing in bread daily,” Tescher said. “And we have one gal who is no longer with us because she grew big enough that she is now renting a commercial kitchen.”
Other producers are growing ever-larger gardens to supply local produce to the community, including one fellow with a hydroponic garden, who is supplying fresh bunches of basil on a regular basis.
“I would say almost everybody in our market has become a success story in their own right,” she said. “So long as they’ve got the will and what-not to keep moving forward.”
Renée Jean can be reached at Renee@CowboyStateDaily.com.
Wyoming
Hoping to draw Colorado interest, construction begins at $80M betting facility in Laramie County
CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Foundation work is beginning this week on Wyoming’s next horse betting and gaming house.
The $80 million Wyoming Downs facility in Laramie County, one of two the company is investing in over the next couple of years, is poised to be one of the largest facilities of its kind in the state. The company is aiming for a spring 2027 opening.
The facility will host upwards of 600 historic horse racing machines, Wyoming’s largest TV wall, multiple dining options and more across 58,000 square feet. More land was bought for future hotel development. Commuters driving between Cheyenne and the Colorado border can see clearly from Interstate 25 the expansive development.
That placement along the travel corridor is purposeful, Wyoming Downs and 307 Horse Racing President Kyle Ridgeway said.
“I think that the targeted consumer for this is from Colorado or from the Front Range,” Ridgeway said. “I anticipate we’re going to have plenty of people from Cheyenne come down here to play and enjoy the amenities, but when you look at 600,000 people within a 30-minute drive, that’s what justifies this investment and brings all that tax revenue in from another state, which is fantastic.
“We don’t get the opportunity to do that in Wyoming very often.”
There is still plenty to offer Cheyenne residents besides the facility’s amenities. Ridgeway said in a speech to attendees at the project’s groundbreaking Tuesday, June 2, that more than 150 permanent jobs will be supported by the facility on top of the dozens supported by the companies’ corporate offices and the 400-plus involved in the project’s construction.
Groathouse Construction, a Wyoming business, is the project’s general contractor. Wyoming Downs said it believes putting the project in local hands also helps keep the project uniquely Wyoming-focused.
Ridgeway added the facilities have already proven themselves to be effective tax revenue generators for the local governments. The Wyoming Gaming Commission’s 2025 report, released in late May, shows bettors wagered $2.49 billion on historic horse racing machines last year, a jump from the $2.11 billion wagered in 2024.
Wyoming Downs facilities generate roughly $25 million in taxes annually across the state, and Ridgeway estimated after the ceremony that the upcoming $80 million facility alone will generate an additional $3 million for Laramie County once the property has been in operation for a few years.
Horse betting sites have been increasingly popping up across Wyoming this decade. The Wyoming Downs location will be Cheyenne’s second large-scale horse betting facility since 2024, when the 30,000-square-foot Horse Palace at Swan Ranch opened. Ridgeway said Wyoming Downs is still offering something fresh for tourists and residents.
“This’ll have amenities that Swan Ranch doesn’t have, including the largest TV wall in Wyoming and a pretty super-cool sports viewing area with a restaurant and just a level of finish and class that I don’t think Wyoming has quite seen yet with these types of properties,” he said.
Ridgeway said he thinks resident fatigue with these facilities isn’t as strong as it appears, especially given the tourism benefits of off-track betting.
“Wyoming’s been built on mineral extraction and tourism, and what this is is a touristic facility. I’m not aware of any particular pushback about this specific facility outside of — you see random social media comments where people say, ‘Oh, another gambling facility.’ But where this is located, I think people in Cheyenne have generally been supportive of,” he said.
The Laramie County facility will be just one part of a larger project Wyoming Downs is working on over the next few years. Construction will begin in early 2027 on a similar facility in Evanston looking to draw in Utah and western Colorado crowds.
Some of the company’s current facilities, notably in Casper, Cheyenne and Rock Springs, will see millions poured into renovations as well. New smaller-scale parlors will also go up in Gillette and Green River this year, according to an information packet provided by the company.
More details will come as the construction process develops, Ridgeway said. Details about amenities, such as what the complex’s dining options will look like, remain undisclosed, though Ridgeway promised that options will be “excellent.”
“We haven’t made final selections on what the options are, but we have a number of different options on the table that we’re considering for what we want to offer for the customers,” Ridgeway said. “You have to have something that’s high quality for where this is located. If somebody’s going to drive 25 or 35, or even 45 minutes to come here, they got to be able to sit down and have a quality meal.”
For more information as it becomes available and to learn more about Wyoming Downs facilities and 307 Horse Racing‘s events and offerings, see the companies’ websites. Renderings for the upcoming Cheyenne facility commissioned by the company are available for viewing below.
Related
GILLETTE, Wyo. — Two of the Republican candidates for Wyoming governor, Megan Degenfelder and Brent Bien, went head to head in Campbell County this evening. They both highlighted differences in some areas but agreed on energy, public lands, government oversight, abortion and election security.
Degenfelder, Wyoming’s superintendent of public instruction, introduced herself as “a Wyoming ranch kid whose parents clawed their way into the middle class” and said she believes Wyoming is “worth fighting for” because she believes the Wyoming people’s lives are at stake.
Bien, a retired Marine Corps colonel and combat veteran, pointed to his military career and leadership experience.
“My whole adult life has been about leadership, about principled conservative leadership,” he said. “My objective is to restore principled conservative leadership, accountability and discipline to Cheyenne.”
Nuclear energy
Both candidates supported Wyoming’s role in energy production but opposed bringing outside nuclear waste into the state.
“I do not want Wyoming to be … the permanent repository for spent nuclear fuel. I will not allow that to happen on my watch,” Bien said.
Degenfelder said Wyoming should consider nuclear power as part of its energy future but added, “If it works for us to be able to have nuclear as part of the portfolio, then it has to be right for Wyoming and that is ensuring that we do not accept anyone else’s waste, period.”
Public lands
The candidates also opposed privatization of public lands.
“No one loves public lands more than I do,” Degenfelder said. “You start selling that to the highest bidder, Wyoming loses who we are.”
Bien said he is “absolutely opposed” to federal lands being sold to private interests.
“If they do decide to dispose of it, then we as the state of Wyoming should get first-right refusal at no cost,” he said.
Attorney general and judicial appointments
When asked what each would be looking for in an attorney general and judicial appointment, both candidates called for conservative leadership.
Bien said he would seek an attorney general from outside state government.
“I want a clean set of eyes to look at what everything’s been that’s been going on,” he said. “I want someone who will put people first and it will put Wyoming first.”
Degenfelder said she wants stronger advocacy from state agencies.
“I want a bulldog in not just the attorney general’s office, but in all state agencies,” she said. “I want an attorney general that is so aligned to my mission and vision and what I believe that there’s an amicus brief on my desk the next morning after an action takes place.”
Immigration
Both candidates supported stronger immigration enforcement.
Bien explained he wanted to cooperate with ICE “to the fullest extent possible” and to make sure immigrants who are not in the United States legally would be sent out of the state.
Degenfelder said illegal immigration is already affecting communities in Wyoming.
“If you’re here legally, you got nothing to worry about. If you aren’t, it’s time to go home,” she said.
Energy development and green energy
Energy policy generated some of the sharpest comments of the night.
Degenfelder argued renewable energy projects should compete without government support.
“I’m also an economist and so I’ll tell you the way that you kill these green energy, you make them play on the same playing field,” she said. “No more tax subsidies, no more handouts, ensuring the regulatory environment is just as equal.”
Bien took a firmer stance against renewable development.
“Folks, there’s no place in Wyoming for this green energy,” he said. “I want these things bonded up front and where we’re not paying for these like we did all the gas wells. The answer for me is absolutely, unequivocally no.”
Economic development
Degenfelder argued government should focus on infrastructure such as water and sewer systems rather than directing economic development.
“Government does not create jobs. Private business does,” she said.
Bien echoed that sentiment.
“The only business that government has in business is simply to get out of the way. It’s to cut taxes. It’s to deregulate,” he said. “Right now, we’re turning into state capitalism where we have our own state government picking winners and losers.”
Government audits
Both candidates supported increased auditing of state government.
“This state has not done a full-blown budgetary audit since 1989,” Bien said. “Whoever’s belly-aching loudest is going to get audited first.”
Degenfelder agreed.
“We should be auditing every single state agency, every single budget line all the time,” she said. “Government is a beast, and you need someone in there who can tame it and who knows how to do it.”
Abortion
Abortion was another topic where both candidates expressed strong opposition.
“Life starts at conception and there are no exceptions,” Degenfelder said. “We are now one of the most openly abortion states in the country because of that ruling by the Supreme Court. We’re working against the devil here.”
Bien also opposed abortion.
“Folks, for me, there are no exceptions. Life does begin at conception,” he said.
Election integrity
Bien advocated for hand-counting ballots.
“I am very much a proponent of hand tabulation being the primary method of counting all cast paper ballots and I will push that way,” he said.
Degenfelder called for paper ballots statewide.
“Every single ballot should be a paper ballot,” she said, adding that she supports “banning dropboxes.”
Republican platform
Both candidates pledged support for the Wyoming Republican Party platform.
“80% is a no-brainer, and we need to require that out of our elected officials,” Degenfelder said.
Bien said he expects to be held to “100%” of the platform.
“The party’s been co-opted. You have to have an ‘R’ behind your name to win in this state,” he said.
Candidate priorities
During a segment where candidates selected their own discussion topics, Degenfelder highlighted school choice, career and technical education, removing pornography from school libraries and protecting Wyoming’s water rights.
Bien focused on education and agriculture, criticizing student proficiency rates and proposing policies aimed at strengthening Wyoming’s agricultural industry, including declaring agriculture critical infrastructure and reducing regulations on small butcheries.
Technology and education
Although technology and its place within education was not discussed during the debate, County 17 asked both Degenfelder and Bien their thoughts regarding student technology in schools.
Bien said technology is being used too much in classrooms and is making it harder for students to think on their own.
“What it’s doing is it’s dumbing down our kids,” Bien said. “Our kids aren’t learning how to critically think anymore. They go straight to one of the AI things and it generates an answer for them.”
Degenfelder said she backed a bill to ban cellphones during instruction time.
“I supported a bill that came through the legislature a couple of years ago that actually would ban cell use during instructional time, and I stand by that,” Degenfelder said. “I think that it’s appropriate to take cellphones out of classrooms, and what we find is that kids thrive.”
Closing statements
In closing remarks, Bien emphasized his experience as an outsider candidate.
“I am the only outsider in this race, but I am the only one who’s got an inordinate amount of leadership experience,” he said. “Folks, you deserve a government that you can trust.”
Degenfelder pointed to her endorsements from President Donald Trump and U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman.
“I get asked a lot, ‘How did you get the Trump endorsement?’” Degenfelder said. “The answer is really simple. I earned it.”
Alongside other candidates, Bien and Degenfelder will be competing for support in Wyoming’s Republican gubernatorial primary Aug. 18.
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