McDonald's Meats, Inc.

McDonald's Meats, Inc. operates at 8601 Main Ave in Clear Lake, Minnesota, in Sherburne County, under FSIS establishment numbers M8915 and P8915. The federal record lists the plant for meat processing, meat slaughter, and poultry processing, with cattle and hogs slaughtered under inspection. FSIS classifies it as a small establishment with a slaughter volume category of 1.0, meaning under 1,000 head per year, and the grant of inspection date on file is February 18, 2022. 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.

The business website describes a meat market with a full-service counter, special cuts, homemade sausages, and jerky, and states that the company was started in 1914 when John Leo McDonald purchased the Fred Mosford Meat Market. The site traces ownership through Richard McDonald in 1954, Dave McDonald in 1989 and 1994, and fourth-generation owners Travis and Jennifer, who took over in 2009 and expanded the retail store in 2023. The site says products are made from scratch in smokehouses and a sausage kitchen located onsite, and lists 26 varieties of jerky and more than 60 varieties of fresh and smoked sausages.

Beyond livestock work, the website states the plant accepts wild game for processing year-round, including venison, bear, elk, moose, caribou, antelope, goose, and duck, and that it smokes fish, pheasants, ducks, goose, grouse, and turkeys. All wild game must be tagged and registered. Custom and private label processing are also listed.

The website states that beef and hogs are butchered every Tuesday by appointment, and that the plant offers custom and private label processing. Posted processing pricing includes beef butcher, process, grind, paper wrap and box at $1.44 per pound on dressed weight for a whole or half and $1.52 per pound for a quarter, with a minimum charge of $720 for a whole beef. Pork is listed at $1.44 per pound whole and $1.52 per pound half on dressed weight, including bone disposal. Add-on charges are posted for smoking hams at $1.75 per pound, smoking and slicing bacon at $2.65 per pound, slicing side pork at $1.75 per pound, rendering lard at $2.00 per pound, grinding at $0.85 per pound with a 5 pound minimum, and sausage making from $1.95 to $3.75 per pound by type. Patty making runs $1.55 to $1.75 per pound plain with a 20 pound minimum and $3.15 to $4.00 per pound for specialty flavors. Jerky making is $5.25 per pound at 10 to 29 pounds and $4.75 per pound at 30 pounds and over, with a 10 pound minimum per flavor, priced on raw meat weight. The site notes a beef processing form and a downloadable price sheet. FSIS lists the establishment for both federally inspected and custom-exempt slaughter, so producers should confirm which path applies to their animals when booking.

McDonald's Meats, 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.

The website describes a full-service meat counter with locally grown meat, special cuts, homemade sausages, and jerky, and says more than 200 products are carried in store, with free samples daily. An online store lists categories for gift cards, jerky and strips, beef, pork, turkey, wild game, and snack sticks, with examples including bacon flavored beef jerky at $9.49 for 3.5 ounces and $23.99 for 10.5 ounces, and cheddar sticks at $22.99 for a 12 pack. Freezer beef and pork are posted by the cut: beef side at $5.69 per pound, divided side at $5.79, front quarter at $5.29, hind quarter at $6.29, whole hog at $1.95 and half hog at $1.99, all priced on dressed weight with wrapping and freezing included. The site gives an average dressed weight of 410 pounds for a beef side yielding 240 to 260 pounds of packaged meat, and 220 pounds for a hog yielding 155 to 175 pounds. Orders are accepted by phone, online, and in store. Shipping terms and delivery are not 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.