Think butcher

Northwest Premium Meats is a small meat processor in Nampa, one of only a handful in the area. This processing plant caters to smaller livestock operations like Chase Shoemaker who ranches a small herd of buffalo, or bison as they’re properly known. “Definitely a shortage of butcher shop facilities and employees. I’m very fortunate to have butcher spots at that butcher facility down there. But the average person couldn’t call up there and get butcher spots in the next year and a half. They kind of have their customers down there and that’s who they butcher for. And then the other butcher shops around here locally are booking out for the previous season next year. Some places are 14, 15 months out now if you want to process animals down there. So, a huge shortage of facilities and employees as well,” said Shoemaker. 

Plant Operations Manager Elliott Tolbert talks about the shortage of meat processors or “butchers”.

“Right now, I’m down two from where I would like to be. I’d actually like to have probably 3 or 4 additional employees just to have that so people could go on vacation and have coverage,” said Elliot Tolbert.