NEPM: Stillman Quality Meats

“Getting local meat on the plate is so much harder than other meat,” says Kate Stillman, owner of Stillman Quality Meats in Hardwick. Recognizing the challenges for local meat farmers, Stillman embarked on a journey to build a new USDA-inspected smokehouse and processing facility. Adding a local processing option will enable many other local farms to make the products and capitalize on timing for selling their products.

They have spent the last three years collaborating with regional farmers, food advocates, and agricultural professionals to design a facility that truly meets the needs of our larger local food system. The facility is a large project, with Stillman receiving technical support from CISA and Berkshire Agricultural Ventures (BAV).

“By building this facility, we’re talking about investing in rural communities. Hardwick is an incredibly rural community. This facility offers highly skilled, high-paying jobs, year-round jobs right here in Hardwick. That didn’t exist in farming when I started out.”

To learn more about Kate Stillman and her family farm: https://www.buylocalfood.org/valley-bounty-stillman-quality-meats/

To learn more about this project or to pledge support for the crowdfunding campaign:

Help Bring Our USDA Processing Facility To Life

Pig photo courtesy of Stillman Quality Meats; interview photo courtesy of NEPM.