WALL, SD – The Wall Meat Processing plant has been awarded funding to purchase equipment to improve humane handling and enhance food safety measures and efficiencies.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) announced on Wednesday, an additional $21.9 million of funding is being awarded to 111 grant projects through the Meat and Poultry Inspection Readiness Grant Program (MPIRG), bringing total funding to $54.6 million.
Across the United States, the additional $21.9 million is being awarded to 111 grant projects in 37 states, including South Dakota. “The Meat and Poultry Inspection Readiness Grants (MPIRG) will help meat and poultry processors make necessary facility improvements, expand their businesses, and strengthen the nation’s food supply chain,” said Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack.
At Wall Processing, its MPIRG Grant will help the plant deliver service operations in protein manufacturing to more producers and customers under the Cooperative Interstate Shipping program (CIS). Participating in the CIS program will open the plant to larger markets and add another resource to the food supply chain.
“USDA continues to build capacity and increase economic opportunity for small and midsized meat and poultry producers across the country,” added Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Jenny Lester Moffitt.
Facility improvements and expansions funded through MPIRG will help processors obtain a Federal Grant of Inspection or qualify for a state’s Cooperative Interstate Shipment program. Achieving a Federal Grant of Inspection or operating under a Cooperative Interstate Shipment program allows meat and poultry processors to ship products across state lines, develop new markets, increase capacity, and better meet consumer and producer demand along the supply chain
MPIRG recipients and other eligible participants, especially small and underserved stakeholders, in USDA’s Meat and Poultry Supply Chain initiatives are encouraged to take advantage of the broad technical assistance offered through the Meat and Poultry Processing Capacity Technical Assistance Program (MPPTA). AMS has cooperative agreements with six organizations to form the MPPTA network, which has already provided valuable assistance to over 300 businesses and organizations across the U.S. and its territories since its launch earlier this year.
