USDA Meat Plant

A peak into the harvest room of the USDA plant. Picture by Michael P. King — The USDA inspected American Foods Group Harvest Floor is capable of handling all meat species.

The USDA Meat Plant, or USDA processing plant, is the heart of MSABD’s live animal to ready-to-eat product capability. High-quality products produced for Bucky’s Varsity Meats provide the plant’s mostly student employee workforce with hands-on educational opportunities. The plant also provides tissue for biologics research, an emphasis of the MSABD program, and room for product and equipment R&D. USDA inspected subdivisions (approximate flow-chart) of the plant include:

↘ Harvest Floors
     – Livestock: Hogs, cattle, sheep, goats, etc.
     – Poultry: Chickens, turkeys, ducks, etc.
     ↘ Animal Biologics
          – Centrifugation, Steam pasteurization, etc.
     ↘ Chilling
          – Spray-Chill: Mist assisted.
          – Ultra-Chill: -40°F temperature with high airflow.
          – Holding Cooler: Chilled staging room.
          ↘ Fabrication
               – Carcass reduction: steaks, chops, bellies, breasts, thighs, wings, trimmings, etc.
               – Cold storage/frozen storage.
               ↘ Processing
                    – Grinding, chopping, injection of cure solution, tenderizing, sausage/patty-making, etc.
                    – Spice Room: seasonings, natural cures, etc.
                    ↘ Smokehouses (4)
                         – Each with unique capabilities.
                         – Pass-through design.
                    ↘ Kitchen
                         – Cooking: grills, ovens, steam kettles, etc.
                    ↘ Ready-To-Eat
                         – Cold storage/frozen storage.
                         ↘ Packaging/Labeling
                              – Vacuum, etc.

The processing room hosts the equipment used in making an array of meat products.

The RTE packaging room is the final step before product is sold at Bucky’s Varsity Meats.

The commercial kitchen is home to catering and an assortment of cooking methods.

– We have properly refrigerated production areas
– Larger coolers and freezers that function much better than the old building
– Ability to bring in any processing equipment we want through our dock area. Equipment for testing, etc.
– Unique capabilities: CO2 stunning for pigs, ultrachill, spray chill, blast freezing, large kitchen space
– 4 smokehouses with unique capabilities compared to just one small one in the old building
– Better food defense with card access locks
– Better sanitation with walls, floors, doors, etc.
– Ante rooms for transitioning from one processing area to the next (raw, RTE, harvest)
– Separate rooms for different processing areas to prevent cross contamination (raw, RTE, harvest)

Current Facility Fee-for-Service Rates:

2026 Fee-For-Service Rates External for MSABD

(Please use our contact form below to request a custom quote.)