On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration announced that it would give the Sullivan County Industrial Development Agency $800,000 in funds to build a slaughterhouse in Liberty, according to the Times Herald-Record and the Mid-Hudson News.
Not everybody will be happy with this development (here's looking at you, Liberty Independent), but farmers who raise livestock say having a nearby place to process their animals is going to be a huge economic boost. From the Mid-Hudson News:
Paul Hahn is a fifth generation dairy farmer in Callicoon Center. He is converting some of his herd to beef, and presently has 15 beef cattle.
It will dramatically cut my costs down," said Hahn, who added this will clearly enable him to grow his beef business.
“This is going to allow your small farm, which this county is known for, to grow, and hopefully bring more in; but not just grow in numbers as more farms, but actually grow the smaller farm into larger operations.”
Photo of a Louisiana slaughterhouse by Southern Foodways Alliance, via Flickr.
