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30 | SIGNATURE MONTANA Wines had to build structures over the processing trailers, get approved septic and water systems, and meet Montana Department of Labor and Industry requirements aer purchasing the lot in July 2021. en, she had to develop plans for Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP), training, operational, and equipment and have them reviewed before she could apply for a federal grant of inspection. "First, the company applies for a grant of inspection and the agency issues a provisional establishment number," explains McCafferty. "en, the company has to get all their facilities up to federal Big Sky Processing is a new USDA-inspected processing facility in central Montana, offering another option for producers to process and market local beef. requirements; the USDA may come in or do a walk-through to verify that the company is meeting all the requirements: facilities, programs, supplies to operate, and even have their labels ready." Once a company has met all those requirements and plans, the frontline supervisor will do a final walk-through and then issue a recommendation for inspection to the district office. "ere are always things that pop up," says McCafferty. "ere are a lot of agencies involved when building a federal facility – apart from USDA. e owner has to deal with a lot of different agencies, and none of them communicate with each other." Big Sky Processing Plant passed the grant inspection period in late February and is in the full inspection period while beginning the process of licensing a retail store, where Wines says she plans to purchase and consign meat, sausage, jerky, pepper sticks, and other meat products manufactured on-site. "I want to help ranchers make an extra buck on their beef," she says. "Our expectations are to do it the way the USDA wants; aer all, our slogan is, 'a cut above.'" e Big Sky Processing Plant will provide beef, pork, lamb, and bison meat to the retail store, as well as offer custom processing services. However, USDA limits the hours of operation for inspected slaughter. "You can only work in the hours that a plant designates within an eight-hour period; ours is 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.," explains Wines. "e final carcass has to be looked at by 4:30 p.m. for the USDA stamp. However, we can continue to work on custom slaughter or processing animals aer those hours." Photo by: Mariah Heitzman Supply chain disruptions and shortages during the COVID pandemic spurred a renewed interest in local food production and meat market regulatory changes making it easier for producers to meet consumer demand. Photo by: Shannon Ruckman

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