Legacy Custom Meat Processing

Legacy Custom Meat Processing operates at 4315 E Hwy 71 in La Grange, Fayette County, Texas, under FSIS establishment numbers M48260 and V48260. The federal record lists meat slaughter, meat processing, voluntary slaughter and processing of meat, and export certification, with a grant of inspection dated April 2, 2022. FSIS classifies the plant as Very Small and places its slaughter volume in the under 1,000 head per year category. Species slaughtered under inspection, as reported to FSIS, are cattle, hogs, and sheep and lamb. The plant also reports custom-exempt slaughter, in which animals owned by the customer are returned in packages marked Not for Sale, retail-exempt sales, and halal slaughter.

The company website states that the facility is dual inspected, both USDA and state inspected, and that every animal is inspected and processed humanely. It describes custom processing for beef, pork, goat and lamb, with cut sheets used for each animal and each cut vacuum sealed, labeled, boxed and frozen. According to the About Us page, Legacy Custom Meat Processing opened in December 2020 after an experienced rancher and an executive chef purchased an existing USDA processing facility in La Grange. The site notes the location is within an hour and a half of Austin, Houston and San Antonio.

Beyond processing, the website describes a small meat market with frozen beef, pork and exotic products, house-branded Gyulais beef described as a Charolais and Wagyu cross, and a South Texas Antelope (Nilgai) program of field harvested wild game processed under state and federal inspection and supplied to restaurants, distributors, caterers and meat markets. The website mentions goat processing, while the FSIS record lists cattle, hogs, and sheep and lamb as the species slaughtered under inspection.

The website states that cows, hogs, goats and sheep are accepted for slaughter on Tuesdays and Wednesdays during normal business hours, by appointment only. Pricing is based on rail weight. Posted rates, effective April 1, 2022 and subject to change, list a beef harvest fee of $80 per head, a swine harvest fee of $60 per head, and cut, wrap and freeze at $1.30 per pound of rail weight, with a combined harvest and cut, wrap and freeze fee of $200 per animal for sheep, goat and lamb. Scalding for swine is listed at $95 per animal with a 10 pig minimum. Extras include patties, hand cut stew meat and tenderizing at $1.00 per pound, cured and smoked product at $2.00 per pound, halving and quartering at $0.30 per pound, inventory at $0.20 per pound of rail weight, and head and hide at $45 each for cattle. Beef hangs a minimum of 7 days. Custom labels must be ordered four weeks before animals are dropped off. Storage is $10 per day after 7 days once product is ready. Cut sheets for beef, pork, and sheep, goat and lamb are posted on the website. The plant reports custom-exempt slaughter to FSIS, so customer-owned animals come back marked Not for Sale, and it reports halal slaughter. Availability of dates is not stated; call (979) 249-2571 to schedule, as listed.

Legacy Custom Meat Processing 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 small meat market with a variety of frozen beef, pork and exotic products, including house-branded Gyulais beef and South Texas Antelope (Nilgai) products. Market hours are listed as Monday through Friday, 8 am to 5 pm. The plant also reports retail-exempt sales to FSIS. Online ordering, shipping, delivery, and sales of halves or quarters to household buyers are not mentioned 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.