Wasatch Food Co-op (WFC), Salt Lake City's first community-owned grocery store, opens tomorrow at the Milk Block in Liberty Wells after nearly two decades in the making.

Why it matters: Co-op grocery stores have gained popularity in many U.S. cities since the 1960s as consumers become more conscious about where they spend their money and how those dollars are reinvested in local communities rather than large corporations.

How it works: Like many food co-ops, WFC operates under a member-owner model, where members have a say in how the store is run, who serves on its board, and what's stocked on shelves, Danielle Fisher, a secretary for the board of directors, told Axios.

• Profits are either reinvested in the store or community or paid back to member-owners as dividends, she noted.

The intrigue: Only about 5% of vendors at a typical grocery store are local. At WFC the rate is 20%.

• Some businesses include Publik, Baby's Bagels, Sweet Lake Biscuits & Limeade, Bewilder Brewing and Argentina's Best Empanadas.

Catch up quick: Plans for the store were first envisioned in 2009 by a group of residents. Today, the co-op has over 2,000 members.

State of play: The store's grand opening begins at 9:15am and will include more than 50 local growers and producers, as well as samples, live music and free coffee.

Kim's thought bubble: During my brief stint in Sacramento, known as "America's Farm-to-Fork Capital," I loved stopping by my neighborhood co-op for fresh produce from nearby farmers and treats made by local bakers.

• It was pricier than a typical grocery store, but the produce lasted longer and tasted better. Plus, it felt rewarding to support local businesses.

WFC will open daily from 8am-8pm.

Tell a friend

🍄 Utah County is appealing a December federal court ruling that found Provo's Singularism Spiritual Center enjoys religious freedom to use magic mushrooms in worship without criminal prosecution. (Utah News Dispatch)

📲 A multi-week trial is set to begin Nov. 2 in Utah's lawsuit against Meta, which alleges the tech giant engaged in deceptive practices and harmed young people. (FOX 13)

⚖️ Salt Lake City has a backlog of more than 49,000 immigration cases as a new judge joins its four-judge federal Immigration Court. (KUER)

🚍 A new shuttle bus will connect downtown Moab to Arches National Park later this year now that state, federal and county governments have agreed to fund a pilot project to address heavy traffic. (KSL)

The New York Times analyzed its own stories to determine which topic in each state gets the most disproportionate amount of coverage.

Zoom in: Utah's is, unshockingly, polygamy.

The latest: Researchers estimate about 30,000 people live in Utah's polygamous communities — slightly less than 1% of the population.

Yes, but: Those communities occupy outsize space in the public imagination.

• Virtually every streaming service now has so many documentary and dramatic films and series about polygamous Mormon sects that they're hard to tell apart.

Case in point: "Escaping Polygamy" and "Escape From Polygamy" both appear on Amazon.