(KRTV.com)
Under US law, meat served in schools must be processed by a USDA licensed plant.
For Big Sandy, Pioneer Producers has made it possible to do so, with the local lunchroom serving meat from right in their own backyard.
Pioneer Producers works with Producer Partnership, a Livingston processing facility that is licensed with the USDA, that started in 2020. Producer Partnership was started to try and help the local food bank during the pandemic.
Producer Partnership processes all meat for school programs free of charge. It has returned local beef to fifteen schools. One of the major benefits is that the meat can be stored in Producer Partnership freezers, as many locations do not have the proper storage capacity.
Over the last two years, Big Sandy lunches have included over $250,000 in local meat.
