Missouri plant to begin fed cattle processing next week

A cattle processing facility in eastern Missouri says it will begin processing fed cattle the first week of May.

David Jagodzinske with America’s Heartland Packing tells Brownfield this was always part of the plan.

“Similar to our startup that we did on the non-fed side, we will start slowly and really get the training and food safety, the animal handling right, and then work through the different grades of cattle, and then, ultimately, make sure that we’re making the product to spec for our consumers.”

Missouri Ag Director Chris Chinn says processing fed cattle adds a new layer to a state that’s primarily cow-calf, providing more value to cattle.

“We now have the opportunity to feed more cattle here in the state because our transportation costs are going to go down. That’s one of the largest expenses that a cattleman has outside of feed is trying to transport their cattle to market. Having this facility here is going to cut that cost and make it more profitable for our industry.”

Jagodzinske says building feeding capacity in Missouri will take time, but the company is looking at this as a long-term opportunity.

“Producers can really figure out the most efficient way to raise cattle to finish weights, and give them an outlet for their cattle that they don’t have to haul hundreds or thousands of miles away.”

After one year of processing non-fed cattle, Jagodzinske says America’s Heartland Packing has been processing roughly 1,000 head each day. Chinn says that’s in response to the higher cattle prices.

“It’s all about making sure that you take your time and you’re able to retain as much of the meat product as you can.”