Rantoul Foods LLC dba Agar Foods LLC

Rantoul Foods LLC, doing business as Agar Foods LLC, operates at 205 Turner Drive in Rantoul, Champaign County, Illinois, under establishment number M35. The plant reports meat slaughter and meat processing activities to FSIS, with hogs as the species slaughtered under inspection. FSIS lists the operation in its small size class with a slaughter volume category of 4.0, and the grant of inspection on file is dated January 19, 2022. No custom-exempt activity is reported to FSIS.

The company website describes a family of brands: Rantoul Foods as the harvesting facility, Trim-Rite as a customer ham boning facility, and Agar as the retail brand found in grocery stores. The business presents itself as a family-owned wholesale pork supplier and processor working with Midwest family farms, serving retail grocery meat departments, foodservice providers, distributors, further processors, and export partners in the United States and abroad. Products listed include fresh and frozen pork cuts, case-ready pork, custom pork programs, and bulk pork supply, described as minimally processed and non-enhanced.

The site describes a process built on what it calls the three C's, Calm, Clean, and Cold. Animal handling areas are described as designed by animal care expert Dr. Temple Grandin, with rest and low-stress movement for arriving hogs. A three-step scalding system using scrubber brushes, high pressure hot water, and a steam cabinet is described as the Purity Pathway, and specialized coolers are described as chilling product rapidly without freezing. Details beyond the federal record and these website statements, including hours, retail counter access, and any farmer-facing custom processing, are not on file.

The website is directed at wholesale buyers rather than households. It states that Agar is the retail brand representing the company's presence in grocery stores, so household buyers would encounter the product at retail rather than at the plant. No retail counter, halves or quarters, bundles, online ordering, delivery, or shipping to households is stated in the sources.

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.