The Devil is in the Details: USDA Owes Independent Processors Clear Commitments

The risks of our highly consolidated processing system may have come to light for many during the pandemic, but these consequences aren’t new. For decades, Missouri Rural Crisis Center has heard from our members who raise livestock about the limited options for slaughter and processing and its impact on their businesses. I often hear them say that they have consumer demand for their product and they know they can produce more animals while keeping their standards high, but they can’t expand their business because there simply aren’t enough processing facilities available to small producers like them.