Local Meat Campaign
Information on Oregon Rural Action's local meat campaign
New Campaign Fact Sheet!
Download a PDF of "Local Meat: It's NOT for Dinner"
Campaign News
Thanks in part to the efforts of Oregon Rural Action and its coalition partners to shed light on the struggles of local meat producers with current regulations, the Oregon Department of Agriculture has established a State Meat Working Group. Oregon Rural Action will have a seat at the table and will be actively pursuing options that will improve the ability of local meat producers to get their products to local markets.
The purpose of the Meat Processing Working Group is to discuss and develop various approaches for increasing the capacity of local meat processors to assist Oregon's livestock producers to achieve additional marketshare.
Read the Oregon Department of Agriculture's working paper, So You Want to Process Meat? (PDF)
Currently many local meat producers have to drive hundreds of miles just to get to a USDA inspected meat processing plant per regulations. Oregon Rural Action is working to create better solutions for local meat producers and processors.
For more information, please contact Executive Director Andrea Malmberg at the Oregon Rural Action office at 541-975-2411 or email andrea@oregonrural.org.
Background Information
In the US, many foods cannot be obtained in the areas where they are produced without first traveling an average of 1500 miles through conventional distribution lines. In Oregon, we consume less than 2% of the food produced in our state, even though agriculture is one of the biggest sectors of our economy and our climate allows us to produce a wide array of products. Specifically, in regions where raising beef and lamb is common, there is no access to locally grown meat unless it first travels at least three hours to be harvested and three hours back to where it is raised. As fuel prices increase and trucking companies are becoming reluctant to supply rural populations, our food insecurity is becoming an issue of great concern.
Recent food safety scares, adverse publicity on how livestock are treated in factory farms and the feeding of “downer” cows in schools are fueling a national wave of interest and enthusiasm among consumers around the establishment of viable alternatives to the corporations that dominate our food system.
Although we will be posting more information soon on our local meat campaign - including a nifty factsheet - if you would like more information on the campaign and how to participate, please contact Andrea Malmberg at 541-975-2411 or email andrea@oregonrural.org.
