Kentucky earns national recognition for economic growth, job creation
FOX23 News at 9 p.m
FRANKFORT, Ky., (KBSI) — Kentucky has received a Silver Shovel Award from Area Development magazine for the second consecutive year, recognizing the commonwealth’s success in attracting business investment and creating jobs.
Gov. Andy Beshear announced the honor Tuesday, noting that Kentucky earned the award in the category for states with populations between 3 million and 5 million. It marks the fourth Gold or Silver Shovel designation Kentucky has received during the Beshear administration.
Area Development highlighted several major projects announced in 2025, including General Matter’s $1.5 billion uranium enrichment facility in McCracken County, Apple’s more than $2 billion investment in Corning’s Mercer County facility, Ford Motor Co.’s nearly $2 billion investment at its Louisville Assembly Plant and Kroger’s $391 million distribution center project in Simpson County.
The publication also named GE Appliances’ $490 million expansion at Appliance Park in Louisville as one of its Manufacturing Projects of the Year. The project is expected to create 800 new jobs and bring production of more than 15 front-load washer models to the facility beginning in 2027.
According to the Governor’s Office, Kentucky announced more than 1,300 private-sector location and expansion projects since 2019, representing more than $50 billion in planned investment and over 70,000 jobs.
The state also set a record for exports in 2025, shipping $50.6 billion in goods globally, a 5.65% increase from the previous year.
Area Development’s annual Gold and Silver Shovel Awards recognize states for attracting high-value economic development projects based on factors including investment totals, job creation, industry diversity and the number of new facilities.
