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The Meat Up December 2023
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Bimonthly newsletter by the the Local Meat Processing Support Program
Serving Eastern NY and Southwestern New England
The Local Meat Processing Support Program is a program of Berkshire Ag Ventures in partnership with Berkshire Grown. To learn more about our work visit our webpage.
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Food Safety and HACCP Hotline
Nicole Day of AgriForaging holds office hours for the Hotline Thursdays from 12-4pm. Free of charge. Must register in advance.
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Visit and Video From the USDA
The USDA office of Rural Development visited Plymouth Meats and BAV’s LMPSP to highlight the success of our partnership. This is a real testament to incredible work everyone involved with this has done, not least our very own Katie Adkins!!!
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Livestock Farmer Resource Guide
A resource guide for livestock farmers listing regional transportation, distribution, cold storage, and wholesale options.
If you offer relevant services, or know of someone that does, and would like to be included in our resource lists, please fill out the entry form.
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Livestock Working Group Meeting
LMPS’s Livestock Working Group -- 12 livestock farmers, meat processors, distributors, service providers in the Berkshire-Taconic Region -- met in October to discuss Berkshire Ag Ventures' work with Food Works Group to conduct a study on a USDA-inspected meat processing facility dedicated to value-added processing to serve the greater Berkshire region.
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Regional News
Slaughterhouses Upgrade Thanks to MPEG Grants
La Salumina and Hilltown Pork were both awarded MPEG Grants for facility upgrades and new equipment purchases.
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Raven and Boar Upgrades
Raven and Boar has moved into their own on-farm processing facility under USDA inspection starting in November.
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VT Packing House New Ownership
Walden Local Meats now fully owns Vermont Packing House. Currently looking to increase throughput by working more with independent small farms in the region.
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Higley Hill Closing
Unfortunately, DC Farms (FKA Higley Hill) is closing.
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Heart and Seoul Food Co Launch
Heart and Seoul Food Co -- "making delicious foods rooted in culture to nourish your body, honor the animal, and heal the planet" -- will soon launch preorders for their delicious Korean-style bone broths and cooking fats.
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Livestock Producers Gather
Dave Llewellyn and Lauren Kaplan of the Glynwood Center hosted a Hudson Valley Livestock Producers Gathering at Chaseholm Farm in early October. They discussed their Regional Food Systems Partnership grant working to strengthen meat processing systems and create more viability for livestock farmers in the Hudson Valley. Featured Heart and Seoul's delicious bone broth.
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Adapting Apprenticeship Programs to Meet Diverse Learning Needs
New Entry Sustainable Farming Project
12/1 Registration link
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Leasing Farmland in Berkshire County - Dalton, MA
American Farmland Trust
12/5 Registration link
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Spotlight Stone Barns and Blue Hill Retired Dairy Cow Program
In this section, we feature a producer, processor, project or collaboration that we think others could benefit to learn more about.
Do you or someone you know have a creative or collaborative approach that we could spotlight?
Contact Ren Constas at Ren@berkshiregrown.org.
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Advocacy and Solidarity
LASO Act: Tell Congress to support land access for young and BIPOC farmers
The LASO Act expands on the promise of the Increasing Land, Capital, and Market Access Program (LCM), launched by USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) in August 2022. LASO would make $100 million of funding for land access available to young and BIPOC farmers every year through the 2023 Farm Bill. From National Young Farmers Coalition.
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Urge your office to support local meat processors and independent farmers and ranchers
Call or write your reps to urge them to cosponsor the Strengthening Local Meat Economies Act (S.2792), introduced by Senator John Fetterman. Call the Congressional switchboard to be connected directly with your Senators and Representatives at 202-224-3121.
If you are a small meat processing plant operators who is willing to share your stories around lack of access to government procurement, or success of doing so and how it supported your business, please connect with any of the following individuals:
Neza: neza@sustainableagriculture.net
Connor: connor@sustainableagriculture.net
Aaron: aaron@rafiusa.org
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Berkshire Agricultural Ventures acknowledges that we live and work on the unceded land of the Mohican, Munsee Lenape, and other Indigenous peoples. We recognize that the United States was built on stolen land and that all systems in this country are built on the stolen labor of Black, Indigenous, Latinx, Asian, and other people of color.
You can read BAV's full statement on diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging here.
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