Illinois Meat Markets Meet Demand

When the pandemic prompted panic-induced purchases of meat, a flurry of new and established customers filled home freezers to capacity, putting the young Farmhouse Meat Co. on the map.

“Prior to COVID-19, there were a lot of people that didn’t realize our company existed,” says Cassie Rea, general manager of Farmhouse Meat Co., a meat-processing and retail facility in Carthage. “COVID opened people’s eyes to us when the local groceries were out of meat or restricting the amounts. We had people fleeing to us even to buy ground beef.”

In late 2018, a group of 10 Hancock County farmers and business owners opened Farmhouse Meat Co. after the closure of the local meat locker (a refrigerated room for storing meat). Business was steady, but when the pandemic struck, demand soared. People flocked for their locally raised ground beef. Customers purchased cuts of pork, beef and chicken by bundles that could last them months. And people started to buy livestock raised on local farms for Farmhouse Meat Co. to process into cuts by the whole, half or quarter animal – a concept known as custom processing.

In fact, by the turn of 2021, the company had booked out custom beef processing into 2023, with 85 people on the waiting list hoping for a spot to open before then.

“The biggest change I have seen in the past year is the uptick in custom processing,” says Rea, who manages the facility’s custom processing of pork, beef, lamb, goat, sheep and deer. “When people were running out of meat, they took a step back and talked to their local livestock producer and realized they could fill their freezer by getting livestock custom-processed.”

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Return to the Butcher Counter

More people than ever want to buy meat in bulk from local farmers and butchers, a trend accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic. In late spring 2020, supermarkets found themselves unable to maintain adequate supply as large-scale packing plants experienced COVID outbreaks among their employees.

“Once we saw the snag last spring where grocery stores and supermarkets started to experience empty shelves, a lot of people went back to contacting their local butcher shop or meat processor,” says Tasha Bunting, associate director of livestock programs for the Illinois Farm Bureau. “They revisited the counter they forgot was there or didn’t know existed.”

Farmhouse Meat Co. added a second work shift to keep up with the elevated demand for steaks, roasts, house-made brats, sausage links and snack sticks in its retail store.  In Peoria County, the meat connoisseurs of Pottstown Meat & Deli worked 14-hour days every day of the week to keep their meat cases stocked in the early months of the pandemic.

The buying frenzy was unlike anything Pottstown’s owners, the Barth family, had experienced during their more than 100 years in the meat business. Co-owner Jason Barth says the family’s Peoria shop started to offer curbside pickup service for the first time since his great-grandfather started cutting meat in the early 1900s.

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An Expanding Customer Base

Pottstown Meat & Deli continues to welcome new customers, who are delighted to discover a mix of classic beef and pork cuts, smoked products and other offerings that differentiate the business. More than 30 flavors of marinated chicken breast. Dozens of fresh and smoked sausages. A variety of gourmet hamburgers. Cuts of beef, pork and lamb from local farms, such as Kilgus Farmstead in Fairbury.

“In our situation, customers don’t seem to be focused on the cheapest,” says Barth, whose store also offers homemade salads, deli meats, seasonings and craft beers. “They want a good-quality product for their meals. We’ve got a good following for any of our local products. Folks come in, and all they will buy is Kilgus pork chops or ground beef or sausage we make from their products.”

Likewise, Farmhouse Meat Co. sees new customers daily from the tri-state area of Illinois, Missouri and Iowa, with customers seeking to source meat from a local business. The company’s sales also increased 10% once they started accepting payments through the U.S. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, a benefit the company added with guidance from the Illinois Farm Bureau.

“Local is important,” says Kristin Huls, co-owner of Farmhouse Meat Co. and a local dairy farmer. “I think fresh and knowing where their food comes from is important. I think COVID has caused an increased awareness and appreciation of that aspect, and I’m excited to see what the future holds.”