Meat Processors Grow With Grants

Gov. Tony Evers, together with the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP), during June Dairy Month, today announced that 18 Wisconsin meat processors will receive grants through the 2026 Meat Processor Infrastructure Grant Program. Created by Gov. Evers in 2021, these grants help local meat processors modernize and grow their businesses, produce new products, or expand their markets, while improving profitability and sustaining the long-term viability of Wisconsin’s meat processing facilities. 

Last summer, Gov. Evers was proud to sign the bipartisan 2025-27 Biennial Budget, which builds upon the governor’s and the Evers Administration’s efforts to support Wisconsin’s farmers and farm families, producers, and processors. The bipartisan state budget directed significant investment in the state’s agricultural industry, including an additional $1 million to bolster the successful Meat Processor Infrastructure Grant Program.

Thanks to investments secured by Gov. Evers in the 2025-27 biennial budget, a total of $700,000 was available for this year’s meat processor grants, with a maximum of $50,000 allowed for each project. Grant recipients were selected through a competitive review process and are required to provide a match of 100 percent of the grant amount. DATCP received 47 applications totaling $1.77 million in grant requests. An additional $700,000 in grants will be available in 2027.

The Meat Processor Infrastructure Grant Recipients:

• Almena Meat Company Inc. in Almena to replace the harvest floor carcass cooler and refrigeration system. 
• Bark River Poultry Farms in Hartland to update processing equipment within the licensed mobile processing unit.  
• Black River Meats LLC in Withee to expand cooler capacity to support continued growth and operational efficiency.  
• Blair Meat Market in Blair to replace reduced oxygen packaging equipment.  
• Bloomington Meats II in Bloomington to replace a 60-year-old bacon slicer.  
• Durand Smokehouse in Durand to install smokehouse grease traps to separate grease from wastewater.  
• Fayes Frozen Foods LLC in Sheboygan to expand the production, packaging, and freezing line.  
• Fox Brothers Piggly Wiggly in Hartland to purchase a grinder to improve the speed of production.  
• Frontpage Processing in Scandinavia for a physical infrastructure expansion.   
• Hoesly’s Meats in New Glarus for a freezer expansion, compressor, and evaporator upgrades.  
• Marchant’s Meats & Sausage in Sturgeon Bay for a 1,100 square foot building expansion.  
• The Meat Block LLC in Greenville to purchase a blast chiller and oven.  
• Northstar Bison in Cameron for a reefer truck purchase.  
• Riverside Meat in Waukesha for equipment purchases to add production lines.  
• Roskom Meats LLC in Kaukauna to purchase a high-capacity sausage stuffer.  
• Salchert’s Market Inc. in Saint Cloud to modernize the existing freezer and install bone processing equipment.   
• Sheboygan Pasty Co. in Sheboygan for packaging line upgrades.  
• TMB East LLC (DBA Haen Meats) in Kaukauna for a cooler addition to separate raw product from RTE.