Regulatory Compliance for USDA Plants

If you want to process red meat in NYS, you will either need to become a Custom Exempt plant or a fully inspected USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) facility. Either way, you will need to comply with USDA regulations and work with a USDA inspector. As you are getting started, your local USDA inspector is the person best equipped to answer questions about compliance. Here is contact information for the inspectors in NYS.

If full inspection is your goal (meaning that there is an inspector stamping every carcass you kill, and the meat processed by your facility can be sold by the cut and over state lines) The USDA offers a Step-by-Step Guide to applying for a full Grant of Inspection.

Most of compliance is around ensuring the meat coming from your facility is safe to consume. For fully USDA-inspected facilities, a HAACP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point) plan is essential. These plans can be complicated and expensive to write. The USDA offers excellent guidance on this and other topics on their Small and Very Small Plant Resources page.