Lease signed for new Cattle Producers' slaughter house
CBC Crescent Bar Chronicle News
MOSES LAKE – A new slaughter house will likely be on everyone's mind when the Cattle Producers of Washington has its monthly general meeting here on April 11.
The meeting will be held at 7 p.m. at Bob's Cafe at 1741 Kittleson in Moses Lake. It will be preceded by a no-host dinner at 6 p.m.
The Cattle Producers of Washington Livestock Processors Co-op has signed the lease for its long-planned 5,600-square-foot slaughter facility at Odessa. It will be located at the Odessa Industrial Park.
The Odessa Public Authority will build the facility and lease it to the cooperative. The CPW will have the option to purchase it at the end of 20 years.
The cooperative has raised $400,000 in matching funds. That attracted a $1.2 million loan from Washington State's Community Economic Revitalization Board.
The facility will have the capacity to handle a variety of livestock and 5,000 head of cattle a year. It will employ four people at first.
“Consumers are seeking healthy local food, and local livestock producers are ready to meet that need,” former CPW President Wade King said.
King noted a logjam between consumers and local producers is caused by limited access to USDA processing of meat for retail sale, with traceability from farm to plate.
The CPW Livestock Processors Cooperative Association is a separate for-profit business created to meet this challenge. The Association is building a small-scale facility with USDA carcass inspection for cattle, sheep, goats and hogs.
"We are looking for livestock producers that are seeking to meet the local niche market," King said.
King noted the $1.2 million dollar Community Economic Revitalization Board (CERB) loan has zero interest and no payments due for the first 5 years.
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