Sklenarik's Smoked Meats, Inc.

Sklenarik's Smoked Meats, Inc. operates at 108 S. Robinson Street in Miles, Texas, in Runnels County, under USDA FSIS establishment numbers M34177 and P34177. The federal record lists meat processing, meat slaughter, and poultry processing activities, with a grant of inspection date on file of August 15, 2013. The plant is classed as very small and reports slaughtering cattle, hogs, and sheep and lamb under inspection, with a slaughter volume category of under 1,000 head per year. It also reports custom-exempt slaughter, in which animals owned by the customer are processed and the packages are marked Not for Sale, and reports retail-exempt sales.

The company's website, westtexasjerky.com, describes the operation as a USDA inspected and HACCP approved meat processing facility that has been in business since 1985, with its first smokehouse installed in 1992. Jerky was the first product, and the site states the plant now produces over 12,000 pounds of jerky a year using USDA inspected top round that is hand sliced, marinated in a house seasoning blend, and slow-smoked with mesquite wood. The site says jerky is made daily and that orders ship the day they are made. The business lists membership in the Texas Association of Meat Processors and the Southwest Meat Association.

Alongside the jerky and smoked meat business, the website describes custom harvesting and processing for the West Texas area, with published fees for beef, hog, and lamb and goat work, plus a wild game processing page offered as a downloadable PDF. Shipping descriptions differ between pages: the homepage states orders move by U.S. Postal Service Priority Mail with shipping included in the price, while the About page states UPS Ground is used and a physical address is required. Both pages give a 2 to 3 business day delivery window.

The website states custom harvest is on Monday by appointment only, with animals delivered to the plant no later than 10:00 a.m. on the Monday of the appointment. Unloading is first come, first served, and the plant notes that its humane handling procedures prevent overcrowding the pen, so wild animals or multiple head may mean a longer wait. All livestock must be in good health with no known diseases and must be able to stand and walk in on their own; downed or dead livestock are not accepted. Meat is dressed, chilled, custom cut to specification, vacuum packaged in 3 mil bags with bone guard where needed, boxed, and frozen. Posted fees, subject to change, include a $30.00 per animal harvesting and by-product disposal fee for beef and hogs, a $1.55 per pound processing fee on hanging weight, $0.30 per pound for aging beyond 10 days, $0.50 per pound for one steak per package, $50.00 per animal for cattle over 30 months, $1.00 per pound for cutlets, chicken fries, or patties, $10.00 per customer to divide halves, and $35.00 per animal to keep the hide. Hog options include $1.00 per pound for curing and smoking hams and bacons, $0.50 per pound for breakfast sausage, $1.00 per pound for fresh sausage links, $1.50 per pound for smoked sausage links, $0.25 per pound each for jalapeno or cheese, and summer sausage at $4.50 or $5.00 per pound including 40 percent added beef trim. Lamb and goat processing is a $110.00 flat fee covering harvest, by-product disposal, cutting, vacuum packaging, boxing, and freezing. Because freezer space is limited, orders must be picked up within 5 business days of notification or a $1.00 per box per day storage charge applies. The site provides beef, pork, and other cut order forms.

Sklenarik's Smoked 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 functions as an internet store for jerky and smoked meats, with jerky described as made daily so that an order is filled with jerky made that same day. Shipping information is inconsistent between pages: the homepage states orders go by U.S. Postal Service Priority Mail with shipping included in the price and Next Day Air available through UPS or FedEx for an additional fee, while the About page states UPS Ground is used, requires a physical address, and offers the Postal Service on request. Both pages state delivery in 2 to 3 business days. The federal record notes retail-exempt sales. Whether halves, quarters, or bundles of beef are sold to households is 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.