Butcher Shop With On-Site Processing

Butcher Shop With On-Site Processing Stinson’s Country Style Meats, Houston, Minn., has a physical presence in its community. However, husband and wife Jamie and Michelle Stinson started the business by going farm-to-farm, doing slaughter, cutting and wrapping meat. “We had a combined 32 years in the business when we tried to buy a local meat processor,” says Michelle Stinson. “When it fell through, we bought all the tools and equipment we needed from a company in Melrose, Wis., and started traveling to farms.” When Michelle says we, she truly means it. She’s just as likely to be doing the slaughter, cutting, wrapping and smoking as Jamie. It was a team effort, which continues today. The Stinsons had the support of her parents, who not only encouraged them but also helped out. “My dad converted a reefer to hold up to six beef carcasses at a time,” says Stinson. “My dad rigged it up with its own hoist and winch. We could haul the animal up, skin and gut it, and cut it into quarters.” In addition to beef, hogs and sheep, the two also handled in-season deer processing. They were able to rent an inspected and certified workspace with a smoker and developed their own recipes for sausage and venison. After two years of mobile work, they purchased a building 50 miles to the west in Michelle’s hometown of Houston. With her family’s help, they repurposed the building and moved in all the tools and equipment, including the smoker. They opened the business with her parents, Dave and Kathie Erdmann. “We opened the week they shut down the state because of COVID-19,” recalls Stinson. “When we opened back up, the business really took off and flourished.” Within a few months, the custom slaughter business was booked a year in advance. Forward booking continues today, but the Stinsons try to keep it to only six months. The business keeps growing. The Stinsons began with part of the building and have since expanded to the entire building. One thing hasn’t changed since their days of on-farm slaughter: they recognized then that it reduced stress on the animals. Research has shown that lower stress in animals leads to better meat quality. Although animals are now transported by truck, the facility was designed to minimize animal stress. “There are no sharp edges where the animal walks, and they have firm footing,” she says. “There’s only one way for them to walk and in one direction. They can’t look out of the chute, but they have plenty of light. The more light, the better, as a cow won’t go through a dark area.” Stinson notes that they still occasionally do on-farm slaughter when requested. Whether on the farm or at the slaughter facility, she says her farm clients value the humane handling. “We have several retired dairy farmers helping in the plant, and they say how you handle the animal is what the farmer judges you on,” says Stinson. In addition to custom slaughter, Stinson’s Meats holds an “equal to” certification from the state of Minnesota. It allows them to buy animals from farmers, slaughter them, and sell the meat retail. They’ve become a go-to place for hot dogs in particular. Using traditional spices, they make and slowly smoke up to 600 lbs. of hot dogs each week. Additionally, their store features well-stocked freezers and fresh meat coolers with steaks, roasts, sausages, bacon and more. The “equal to” certificate enables them to fulfill customers’ specific requests. “We have customers who ask for meat from grass-fed animals and even from specific breeds, such as Jersey or Charolais,” says Stinson. “Oftentimes, it’s the breed they were used to eating when they grew up. They’ll place an order, and we’ll let them know when it’s available.” Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Stinson’s Country Style Meats, 402 W. Cedar St., Houston, Minn. 55943 (ph 507-896-2111; www.stinsonscountrystylemeats.com).

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