Flathead, Montana – USDA MPPTA Client Story
When a longtime business owner with one of the only two meat processing facilities in the Flathead Valley of Montana decided to retire, the community sprang into action.
With a waitlist of 18 to 24 months for meat processing, the closure of the Vandevanter Meats would leave local ranchers with a difficult choice: ship their livestock hundreds of miles to another USDA-approved facility or close their operations.
Concerned Community Members
Concerned community members held a meeting in October 2022 to gauge interest in forming a cooperative to purchase the processing facility. Through word of mouth, the group was connected to the Flower Hill Institute, which serves as the lead technical assistance coordinator for the USDA’s Meat and Poultry Processing Capacity Technical Assistance (MPPTA) program.
MPPTA Got Involved
In January, representatives from MPPTA completed a walk-through of the facility with owner Ron Vandevanter and Glacier Processing Cooperative President Mark Siderius. They were able to analyze the facility, provide comments to The Glacier Processing Cooperative leadership, and develop a plan of action to keep moving forward.
“We’ve been learning this on the fly,” said Mark Siderius, president of the Flathead Farmers Union Local and board president of the cooperative. Since that first meeting, the group has consulted with MPPTA to identify the scope of work and complete both a feasibility study and business plan, and they are readying themselves to apply for federal grant funds to make improvements and efficiency upgrades to the existing plant and to buy additional equipment. They hope to officially acquire the facility by the end of the year.
Long-Term Plans for the Processing Facility
Long-term plans include a major expansion of the plant to meet local demand in an area that’s seen record population growth and increased customer demand.
“Had we not had MMPTA’s technical support going forward, I’m pretty sure we would have all gone home in February, and that would have been the end of it,” Siderius said.
100 Community Members in Attendance
At a final member interest meeting in May, more than 100 community members showed up, and a MPPTA representative was on hand to answer questions. According to Siderius, “There was not a single negative comment."
One of those in attendance was Lisa Wade-Mayorga, a fourth generation Montanan who serves as the cooperative’s secretary treasurer. Vandevanter once worked with her family’s business, Montana Better Beef, to certify his plant as organic so that Wade-Mayorga and her family could process their organic beef locally.
Both Wade-Mayorga and her brother had to leave Montana after college to make a living but were able to return to the family ranch because the local processing facilities and growing customer base made it financially feasible.
“I did finally make my way back here, and my heart never really left,” Wade-Mayorga said. “So it would be nice if the next generation doesn’t have to leave Montana.”
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Please note: The Meat and Poultry Processing Technical Assistance (MPPTA) Program is funded through a cooperative agreement with the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service. The MPPTA Project Coordinators do not offer or provide direct contractor services or financial capital, grant writing, or project management services, nor does the voluntary use of MPPTA guarantee the success of a grant application or the grant-funded project