News stories tagged with "slaughterhouse"

(07/16/10) Mostly gone are the days of the neighborhood butcher. They may never come back. They've been replaced by vast meat processing plants putting out shrink-wrapped cuts for supermarkets. But foodies and locavores are fueling a demand for meat raised, killed, and butchered closer to home. The problem in the North Country and much of the Northeast is there aren't enough slaughterhouses or meat cutters. David Sommerstein visited New York's only certification course for the next generation of butchers. more

(03/31/10) The "buy and eat local" movement continues to grow. In at least one instance, it's struggling with success. More people are eating local beef, lamb, and other meats for health, safety and economic reasons. And more farmers are raising the animals. But in between consumer and producer, there's a shortage of slaughterhouses. Local abattoirs used to dot the North Country landscape. But consolidation in the food industry and onerous USDA regulations have pushed many out of business. Another problem is a lack of skilled meat cutters. In part two of a series on the slaughterhouse shortage, David Sommerstein reports. more

(03/30/10) Tonight, local beef, lamb, and pork farmers are gathering at Cornell Cooperative Extension in Canton to discuss a problem that they're happy to have. Increased interest in local grass-fed and free range meat has created a shortage of slaughterhouses in the North Country and across the Northeast. There are only three USDA-certified abattoirs in northern New York, two in St. Lawrence County and one near Saratoga Springs. As David Sommerstein reports, meat processors see a big opportunity and a big risk.

The Cornell Cooperative Extension of St. Lawrence County is hosting a meeting tonight at 7 to discuss the shortage of slaughterhouse facilities in the region.

One note to this story: bison farmer Dale Healey is retiring, but he says it had nothing to do with the slaughterhouse shortage. more