Debbie Chidester tells people that opening her own business "was really just a fluke."

Her brother-in-law owned a bakery and wanted to sell other foods.

"I'm a good cook, and I said, 'What about pasta sauces?' " she said.

That was in 1992. Today, as owner of the South Salt Lake-based wholesaler Plentiful Pantry, Chidester says she's noticing more women entrepreneurs at trade shows she attends across the country.

It's a good observation, according to a new census report, which shows the number of businesses owned by women grew at twice the national rate for all private companies from 1997 to 2002.

The number of women-owned businesses grew by 20 percent over five years, according to the "2002 Survey of Business Owners: Women-Owned Firms," released today by the U.S. Census Bureau. The nearly 6.5 million businesses generated more than $940 billion in revenue, up 15 percent from 1997.

The survey defines women-owned businesses as privately held firms in which women own 51 percent or more of the interest or stock of the business.

It found that about 28 percent of all private companies were owned by women in 2002. States with the fastest growth were Nevada and Georgia.

In Utah, women owned 48,474 businesses in 2002, up 15 percent since 1997, and a quarter of all businesses in the state. The businesses accounted for $5.9 billion in sales and receipts.

In Utah, as in the nation, most firms were single-person enterprises with no paid employees. Some 53,492 Utahns were employed by the 6,242 women-owned businesses with a payroll.

Nancy Mitchell, executive director of the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce's Women's Business Center, said she's seeing an increasing number of women opening businesses, and they're moving into traditionally male fields such as agriculture and construction.

"There's huge demand," Mitchell said. "I can hardly keep up with all my calls. . . . (Women) know what business they want to start and, in most cases, have experience in that field."

Mitchell believes that the report is underestimating women-owned businesses in Utah by requiring 51 percent ownership, rather than half. She pointed to a 2004 report that showed half of all Utah businesses as women-owned. That study by the Center for Women's Business Research considered businesses with 50 percent women ownership.

"The future looks really promising for women-owned businesses," she said. "There are so many small businesses right now, they're going to grow."

Nearly half of Utah's women-owned businesses were defined as retail trade, health care and social assistance or other services. There were also 1,577 women-owned companies in the state's construction industry, with a combined revenue of $421 million.