07/07/05 Meat processing plant

Beef Processing Plant A new beef processing plant is up and running in Oregon. I'm Jeff Keane; I'll be back in one minute to tell you about it. On March 28th of this year Strawberry Mountain Natural Beef processing plant in John Day, Oregon received its first shipment of beef. The beef was raised by 12 area ranchers, fed at a feedlot near Brogan, Oregon, harvested and USDA inspected at Premium Northwest Beef in nearby Nampa, Idaho, and then shipped to John Day for processing. The new plant was the dream and goal of Darrel Holliday, a lifetime resident of Grant County, Oregon. Holliday says Old West Federal Credit Union based in John Day supported the project from the beginning. The business employs 12 people to process the beef and hopes to increase that number by 40 to 50 by the end of the year. The beef cuts produced by the plant are vacuum-packed and blast frozen to a temperature of 40 degrees Fahrenheit. The markets right now for the natural hormone-free beef are restaurants in the Western United States and the U.S. Gymnastics team at some of their locations across the country. Future plans for the operation include pre-cooking roasts, steaks, and hamburger for the wholesale customers. Other than the hamburger, each cut of beef can be traced from calf to end- user. It seems to me this processing plant is creating quite a local economy which is only right since it is the dream of a local resident and financed by a local credit union. I just have to believe these types of enterprises are going to play an increasing role in the future of the beef business. I'm Jeff Keane. Capital Press 6/17/05