Tag: client story

Interested in starting a meat processing business? Whether you’re early in your research, planning to open a new plant, or expanding an existing operation, explore our blog for practical information, real-world guidance, and stories of hardworking Americans who are getting after it.

At Friesla, we’re helping farmers, ranchers, and entrepreneurs build independent meat processing businesses in communities across the country. Explore our resources on starting a meat processing business, the basics of meat processing, USDA inspection requirements, available grants and funding opportunities, and other practical information on building and running a successful operation.


Butcher breaks down a beef carcass in the Cut and Package Module of a Friesla Meat Processing System.

Bear Mountain Beef 5 Years Later: From Startup to 1,000+ Head Per Year

A meat processor’s first year proves they can open their doors. Years two, three, four, and five prove whether the business can endure. This is…

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A team of butchers removing the hide from a beef carcass on a skinning cradle in a Friesla Harvest Module.

Client Story: BRK Meats

Raising, slaughtering, and processing animals for meat was once a routine part of American life, directly connecting communities to their food. Over time, as the…

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Butchers fabricate and breakdown beef carcasses on polytop cutting tables in their Friesla Breaking Module.

Client Story: Harrison Harvesting

“COVID shined a light on how we had neglected our food chain, and it also shined a light on where our whole [meat processing] system…

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Butchers transfer quartered beef carcasses from a Friesla Mobile Harvest Unit into The Meating Place Butcher Shop.

Client Story: The Meating Place

The Meating Place is helping bring back the tradition of independent butcher shops that were once staples in communities across America. Consumers had access to…

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Butcher moving a beef half on the rail in a full Friesla Carcass Aging Cooler.

Client Story: MTXBeef

MTXBeef started over a COVID-era cocktail and a campfire. It was spring 2020. The pandemic had hit. Nestled in the rolling Texas Hill Country—west of…

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Exterior view of a tan Friesla Modular Meat Processing System used by The Producer Partnership for meat processing on a ranch in Montana.

Client Story: The Producer Partnership

Think that opening a meat processing plant during a pandemic might be tough? Try starting the first nonprofit, federally-inspected meat processing plant in the United…

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Friesla clients Brian and Mary Heffernan from Five Marys Ranch on their ranch in Fort Jones, California.

Client Story: Five Marys Ranch

Brian and Mary Heffernan knew that starting a meat processing business would be challenging. “Nothing is easy,” Brian quips. “If it were, everyone would do…

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Butcher breaks down a beef carcass in the Cut and Package Module of a Friesla Meat Processing System.

Client Story: Bear Mountain Beef

At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Mac and Celsie Sussex—owners of Bear Mountain Beef in Hawk Springs, Wyoming—faced both a problem and an opportunity.…

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