Farmhouse Meat Company

Farmhouse Meat Company, doing business as Farmhouse Meat Co., operates at 140 James Street in Carthage, Illinois, in Hancock County. The plant holds establishment number M32298 with USDA FSIS for meat processing and meat slaughter, with a grant of inspection date on file of July 26, 2022. FSIS lists the operation as very small and records cattle, hogs, and sheep and lamb as species slaughtered under inspection, with a slaughter volume category of 1, meaning under 1,000 head per year. The establishment reports retail-exempt sales.

According to the company website, the business began in late 2017 when a group of ten Hancock County livestock producers and business owners met about the void left by the closure of the local meat locker. Construction started in early 2018 on the east side of Carthage, and the facility opened in late 2018 as a custom slaughter and retail meat processing plant serving the surrounding community and the tri-state area. The site describes custom butchering of beef, hogs, and deer, along with a retail store, fresh and frozen beef and pork cuts, sauces, rubs and spices, and deli items such as lunch meat, cheese, snack sticks, and jerky.

There is one difference between the two records a buyer should note. FSIS reports no custom-exempt activity for this establishment, while the website markets custom processing, including deer. Deer processing is not covered by federal meat inspection. Anyone planning custom work should confirm directly with the plant how a given animal will be handled and labeled. Nothing in the sources indicates whether the plant is currently accepting new bookings.

The plant is federally inspected for both slaughter and processing under establishment number M32298 and reports cattle, hogs, and sheep and lamb as species slaughtered under inspection. FSIS classifies it as very small, with a slaughter volume category of 1, under 1,000 head per year, so scheduling capacity is limited. The website says it handles custom processing of beef, hogs, and deer, and posts instructions and pricing pages for beef, pork, and deer, plus standard cut sheets for customers who do not want to make every decision. Note that FSIS reports no custom-exempt activity for this establishment even though the website advertises custom slaughter, so producers should confirm with the plant how their animals will be processed. Specific booking lead times, minimums, kill fees, and per pound cut and wrap rates are not stated in the sources on file.

Farmhouse Meat Company operates under a federal grant of inspection, so product from this plant can be sold anywhere in the United States, which matters if you sell online or across a state line. FSIS does not list a custom-exempt activity for this plant.

Farmhouse Meat Co. runs a retail store at the Carthage location with fresh and frozen beef and pork, deli items including lunch meat, cheese, snack sticks, and jerky, and shelf products such as sauces, rubs, and spices. Meat bundles are sold in store. Digital gift certificates can be purchased online. The website links to a virtual tour of the retail store. The sources do not state whether halves and quarters are sold directly to households, and no delivery, shipping, or online meat ordering is described.

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.