Operating Member

J.R. Simplot AgriBusiness Group - Bringing Earth's Resources to Life

J.R. Simplot AgriBusiness Group - Bringing Earth's Resources to Life

The J.R. Simplot Company is a pioneer in Idaho mining operations. Throughout its history the company has mined gold, phosphate, silica, barite, iron, fluorspar, manganese, monzalite and uranium.

Today the company operates the Smoky Canyon, Idaho phosphate mine near Afton, Wyoming; the Silica Sand Mine near Overton, Nevada, and has a phosphate mine near Vernal, Utah.

Simplot got its phosphate mining start in 1944 with a large phosphate deposit on the Fort Hall Indian Reservation north of Pocatello, Idaho and developed an open-pit mine. JR Simplot named the mine after his only daughter, Gay, the Gay mine would provide raw phosphate rock for the Simplot fertilizer operations in Pocatello for over 50 years.

In the late 1950's Simplot acquired the Conda Phosphate Mine near Soda Spring, Idaho.

With reserves at the company's Conda mine running short, Simplot developed the Smoky Canyon mine in the early 1980s. Located in the rugged mountains 90 miles southeast of Pocatello, the company developed an 87 mile pipeline to deliver more than a million tons of raw concentrated phosphate rock to the Pocatello fertilizer plant annually.

The company's open-pit silica sand operation in Overton, Nevada supplies purified silica sand to glass manufacturers on the west coast. Recently they celebrated their 50th year in operation.

Under the name of Simplot Phosphates, the company owns a large phosphate deposit and mine near Vernal, Utah. The phosphate ore is transported to the Rock Springs, Wyoming manufacturing plant via a 93-mile slurry pipeline. For more information visit the J.R. Simplot Web site at www.simplot.com or the Smoky Canyon Web site at www.smokycanyon.com

Updated Tuesday, March 24 2009