M.e.a.t. party nyc 20218/2/2023 ![]() The increase in local meat sales resulted in increased need for the services offered by the small processors, who could not accommodate the surge. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic caused a spike in demand for local meat. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic this industry already showed potential for growth, as demand 2for local products had been on the rise for several years.² This demand was mirrored by a 2017 Cornell Small Farms Program poll where 85% of livestock producers surveyed believed that the NYS livestock sector had potential for growth. According to a 2014 analysis on the economic impact of agriculture, the non-dairy livestock industry contributes $893 million in sales to the economy, and an extensive and diverse range of products to local and regional markets.¹ The livestock industry provides value to the NYS economy. Together with grant funding for processors, these investments would build a more robust local food supply chain, one that is better equipped to overcome COVID-19-like shocks to our food system. In addition to accessible grant funding for meat processors, additional efforts would be needed to increase the supply of NYS-raised meat, including: 1) a staff position(s) to provide technical and logistical assistance to new and existing processors and farmers, 2) defined pathways to employment as a meat cutter, 3) more value-added processing facilities, and 4) investment in creating and maintaining an updated directory of all meat processing facilities that serve farmers in NYS. Of the Custom Exempt processors, 31.6% would be interested in transitioning to USDA especially if funding was made available (20.3% without funding), and 59.1% of USDA processors would be interested in increasing capacity if funding was made available (54.6% without funding). The results of the survey showed that there is interest by processors in increasing capacity. ![]() To meet this goal a survey was developed and administered via one-on-one interviews to 112 USDA, Custom Exempt, and 5A processors over the course of 6 months from Oct 2020 to Feb 2021. This study was developed to clarify challenges, specifically barriers to increasing processing capacity in NYS. ![]() The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the weaknesses in the current NYS livestock supply chain, especially the bottleneck of meat processing. The livestock industry provides value to NYS by contributing approximately $893M in sales to the economy and supplies nutrient-dense food for local consumers. Mike Baker, Dana Havas, Nancy Glazier, Lynn Bliven, Dr.
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