E.L. Blood & Son, Inc.

E.L. Blood & Son, Inc., known as Blood Farm, operates at 94 W. Main Street in West Groton, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, under FSIS establishment numbers M6354, P6354 and V6354. The federal record lists meat slaughter, meat processing, and voluntary slaughter and processing of meat, with a grant of inspection date on file of August 2, 2021. FSIS classifies the plant as Very Small and places it in slaughter volume category 1, meaning under 1,000 head per year. Species reported slaughtered under inspection are cattle, hogs, and sheep and lamb. The plant also reports custom-exempt slaughter, in which animals owned by the customer are processed and the packages marked Not for Sale, and it reports retail-exempt sales.

According to the establishment's website, Blood Farm was established in 1847 and is a seven generation, family run processing facility and retail meat shop regulated by the USDA. The site describes the business as a place for the local farming community to bring livestock for harvest, listing cattle, lambs, goats and hogs. Goats appear on the website and on the lamb and goat cut sheet but are not among the species reported to FSIS as slaughtered under inspection. The site's history page traces ownership from Edmund Blood, who acquired the farm in 1847 and was granted one of the first Massachusetts abattoir licenses still in existence, through Edmund Lewis Blood, Charles Edmund Elliot Blood, Elliot L. Blood, Sr., Elliot L. Blood, Jr. and Doris Blood, who purchased the farm and business in 1971, and then to their son Richard.

The website states that slaughter appointments are available, as listed, and posts processing prices and a retail meat price list as downloadable PDFs, with prices reflecting a cash and check payment discount and processing prices noted as effective October 7th. Details beyond what appears on the website and in the federal record are not on file.

The website states that slaughter appointments are available and that the plant serves the local farming community for harvest of cattle, lambs, goats and hogs. Species reported to FSIS as slaughtered under inspection are cattle, hogs, and sheep and lamb. A completed cut sheet is required for each animal on or before the slaughter appointment date, and animals will receive standard cuts if instructions are not received. Cut sheets are provided for beef, pig, and lamb and goat, and may be emailed, faxed, or dropped off. Customers must choose either USDA labels or Not For Sale stamps for each animal, and each whole animal must carry the same labels. Cryovac packages marked not for sale are charged for printed labels. Customers selecting quarter beef must have the same cuts for all quarters. Hides and pelts must be requested at the time of drop off from a member of the slaughter floor team. Smoked meat is not USDA inspected, is stamped Not For Sale, and is not cryovacked. Processing prices are posted as a downloadable PDF, with a cash and check payment discount reflected. Minimums and booking lead times are not stated.

E.L. Blood & Son, Inc. 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.

Blood Farm operates a retail store on site where customers can buy cuts, including hams and bacon named on the website. A retail meat price list is posted as a downloadable PDF. The website says the meat cutting room hours vary and asks customers to call the store at 978-448-6669 for fresh cut availability and to place orders. Halves and quarters for household buyers, bundles, delivery, shipping, and online ordering are not described 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.