Meat processor association holds 32nd annual convention in Havre

Meat processors are converging on Havre this week.

Starting Thursday, the 32nd annual processors convention for the Montana Meats Processors Association — MMPA — will be held in Havre, hosted by member and former president Jim Dumas, who owns Big Sandy Meat Shop.

Lower Valley Processing Company owner and President Jeremy Plummer said he is excited for the event and looks forward to all of the seminars and events planned. Events and seminars will be at the Havre Ice Dome, Northern Agricultural Research Center of Montana State University and the Havre Eagles Club.

“This time of year we get together and really do have a lot of fun,” Plummer said.

The convention will be Thursday through Sunday and will include processors from all across the state as well as Wyoming, Idaho, Washington and Wisconsin, he said. MMPA has 40 to 50 members, all of which are from different small meat processing plants in the state.

He said that different meat processing plants in the state host the convention every year, bringing association members to their town to meet with different experts, producers and suppliers from across the state to see opportunities available.

It is becoming harder to find people to do the work in the industry, he said.

“What we do as a small meat processor is kind of a dying breed and we look at it like that,” Plummer said. “So our association is strong, but small butcher shops are going away fast and, at this point, the demand is actually rising. The reason for that is big industries have taken a lot of that, and we are slowly taking a lot of that back, but also, the lack of employees. It’s a skill set that is hard to find.”

He said that the association has a good brotherhood as well as the relationships they keep with their suppliers. Plummer added that one thing he thinks everyone looks forward to every year is the camaraderie.

“There is not really any competition between us, as plants,” he said. “We all have kind of a niche market. You gotta be diverse to make money in this game, but as far as one processor to the other, we get along really well. We share ideas, share methods, share equipment, share employees, anything that we can do to serve our communities.”

He said the demand for the smaller plants is growing, but it is hard work and not a large amount of profit can be made, he said, but that is why those who are doing it are proud of it.

“In our business, if you are not getting bigger or expanding, you’re kind of going the other way,” he said. “Forward motion is what it is about.”

Plummer said that the convention is to help processors update themselves with the changing industry and regulations. The people who attend the convention, besides the members of the association, are state and federal level inspection bureaus, who can provide an update on the recent changes in regulations.

The convention is open to anyone in the community, although there will be an entrance fee for nonmembers, he said.

The convention caters to the processors and affiliates that partner with American Meat Processors Association, which share many members with MMPA and serves as a good resource to them.

At the event Thursday, he said that they are set to tour the NARC research facility, where people working at the facility can share their knowledge of the industry.

“I am looking forward to the research center, going and learning from that,” he said. “I know the research center feels under-utilized, and they have a lot to offer.”

He said that the convention will also have seminars for alternative options for animal waste disposal, such as bones and parts of the intestines.

In recent years the regulations and costs associated with disposing of animal waste have increased, he said. So one of the courses they will offer will look at alternative methods.

“As president this year, I’m trying to take what our members ask for and give that to them,” he said.

A wide range of courses are available to processors, such as courses teaching how small businesses can retain employees and provide benefits to their current employees. There will also be courses on how to measure inventory and utilize bar coding to increase profit margins. He added that the courses available allow processors to get a quicker jump on becoming successful.

“What one person struggles with, more than likely, a lot of other plants struggle with,” he said.

Courses about chronic wasting disease also are offered, Plummer said, covering the effects of CWD, the legal and ethical obligations processors have, and how the disease affects conservation programs and food safety of their customers.

CWD is a big deal to many of the processors in the state that deal largely with game animals. He said that, for example, at his plant they process approximately 1,500 game animals a year.

This year, there will also be courses all about jerky, Plummer said, covering buying, selling, cutting, smoking and teaching producers the best methods for improving their product.

He said that one of the unique things about the convention is the cured meat competition, where processors across the state bring some of their products — such as bacon, sausage and smoked turkey — to be judged by meat scientists. The convention has 21 classes processors can enter and scientists from MSU meat science lab, University of Idaho and other scientist from around the country will judge the competition.

The scientists will come and judge the products, he said, but it is not just a competition.

“It’s a competition but it is also a learning experience,” he said — the scientists pick apart each product and tell processors how they can improve.

“But it’s cool to say that you make the very best ham in Montana,” he added.

Plummer said that they learn a lot from talking with each other and talking to people’s families.

“But for many, the part that everyone looks forward to most is the camaraderie,” he said. “… I think you probably learn the most from that.”

The convention also helps processors and plants to create a relationship with producers and suppliers,” he said. “You take away that communications barrier,” he said. “You know the guy you’re talking to over the phone.”