WASHINGTON – US Senators Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) recently announced a $250,000 grant for one butcher shop in the lawmakers’ home state under the USDA’s Local Meat capacity grant program.

The Meating Place, located in Hillisboro, Ore., features a retail shop and custom-exempt beef, hog, sheep and wild game processing plant.

“The Meating Place is thrilled to be the recipient of the 2023 USDA Local MCap grant. With these funds, The Meating Place will be able to meet the needs of local ranchers with additional processing and packaging,” said Casey Miller owner of The Meating Place.

The facility is also noted as the first operational Oregon Department of Agriculture slaughter and processing plant. Back in June 2022, The Meating Place was awarded a separate grant by the ODA worth about $435,000.

Both senators have toured the facility as it progressed into an option for local citizens.

“Oregon’s family ranchers and farmers should not be at the will of giant conglomerates when they go to process their products,” Merkley said. “I had the opportunity to see firsthand how the sausage was made at The Meating Place’s high-quality processing operation in Hillsboro last summer, and it’s great to see they are receiving this federal investment to beef up the availability of local meat processing. It’s only by strengthening our smaller, local meat processors that we can ensure greater competition, help keep food local, and make it a little bit easier for family ranchers to thrive in a challenging market.”

The Meating Place has an average weekly customer base of about 3,000. With the federal grant, it will expand its inspected processing capacity and look to increase services by 14% to 290 ranches.

The company will also look to purchase new equipment, increase processing volume by 70% and add 10 new employees.