Potts Family Meats

Potts Family Meats, doing business as Georgia Meat Packers, operates at 161 Elliot Smith Rd in Jefferson, Jackson County, Georgia, under USDA FSIS establishment number M47052. The federal record lists both meat slaughter and meat processing activities, with cattle, hogs, and sheep and lamb reported as species slaughtered under inspection. FSIS classes the plant as very small and places its slaughter volume in category 1, meaning under 1,000 head per year. The grant of inspection on file is dated February 16, 2022. The plant also reports custom-exempt slaughter, in which animals owned by the customer are processed and packaged marked Not for Sale, and reports retail-exempt sales.

The plant is tied to Potts Bros Farm, which its website dates to 1801 and describes as eight generations of family farming in the Georgia Piedmont, with eighth-generation farmer Kyle Potts raising grain-finished Angus cattle. The website states the family established its own USDA federally inspected processing facility in Jefferson in 2021; the grant of inspection date recorded by FSIS is February 16, 2022. Alongside beef, the site describes whole-hog sausage, artisan jerky, and smoke sticks produced at the facility.

Two phone numbers appear. FSIS lists (706) 367-5824, which the website identifies as the business office at 319 Potts Rd, open Monday through Friday 9am to 4:30pm. The website gives 706-367-5823 for the Jefferson store and for scheduling processing, along with the email amy@pottsbrosfarm.com. The farm also runs the Cowboy Logic Annual Bull Sale, described as held the second Saturday in December, offering registered Angus herd sires and females. A Jackson County chamber listing states the staff have over 20 years of experience.

The website states that processing is by appointment only and that scheduling is done by calling 706-367-5823. Animal drop-off is listed as Tuesdays, 7am to 11am. Minimum weights are given as 450 lbs for beef and 125 lbs for pork, and animals must be healthy and ambulatory. Beef and pork cut sheets are offered as PDF downloads, and the site says custom cut requests are accommodated. Payment is due at pickup, with cash or check preferred and credit or debit cards accepted with a 3 percent processing fee. The plant reports custom-exempt slaughter to FSIS, so customer-owned animals can be processed with packages marked Not for Sale. FSIS places annual slaughter volume under 1,000 head, so capacity is limited. A Jackson County chamber listing describes the facility as serving local Georgia farmers.

Potts Family Meats reports custom-exempt slaughter to FSIS, which means it can process an animal a customer already owns (a whole, half, or share bought before slaughter) and return it in packages marked Not for Sale. Most small farms have one or two plants they book with, and the plant's calendar decides the delivery date.

The Jefferson location includes a storefront selling cuts from the family's grain-finished Angus cattle, along with pork sausage, jerky, smoke sticks, ground and patties, roasts, and bundles such as the Brand Box. The website runs an online shop with a cart and checkout and states free shipping on orders of $150 or more, plus a first-order code for a free pound of sausage. Store hours are posted on the site. Sales of halves or quarters are not described on the website, though a customer review refers to buying whole animals from the farm.

If you are buying a half or quarter animal, the plant is where the animal is processed; the farm sells you the animal. Read how to buy a half cow for the sequence and the math.