Nearly 150 smaller processing plants get CARES funding

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Nearly 150 smaller processing plants get CARES funding

The Missouri Department of Agriculture says the number of small-to-medium sized meat and poultry processing plants now under state inspection has doubled, through grants made possible by the federal government’s CARES Act passed last year.

With the nearly $17 Million in funding – the Meat & Poultry Processing Grant was created to support meat and poultry processing establishments that employ fewer than 200 people with the goal of creating stronger food supply resiliency across Missouri.

Chris Chinn tells Brownfield Ag News, “We’re really excited about this because it’s giving our Missouri farmers and ranchers another avenue to market their animals to get food to consumers’ plates.”

And the demand that was sparked by the pandemic, she says, remains strong with most of the small to medium sized processors having backlogs of 18 to 24 months.

Funds were disbursed among close to 150 processing facilities.

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