USDA Invests Nearly $4 Million to Expand Kansas Meat Processing: Ten Processors Funded, Largest Grant $2 Million
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced in El Dorado, Kansas, on November 2, 2026, that it is moving forward with nearly $4 million in investments to help ten Kansas meat processors expand capacity, strengthen competition and create new market opportunities for American ranchers. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins announced the funding, which comes through the Meat and Poultry Processing Expansion Program (MPPEP).
The Kansas awards follow the recent announcement by Vice President JD Vance and Secretary Rollins outlining $57 million in MPPEP investments across 40 states. With the congressional notification period now complete, USDA is beginning to obligate the funds to strengthen America's domestic meat processing capacity and supply chain.
"Under President Trump, this administration is delivering for the men and women who feed our nation. Now that these funds are moving, ranchers will have more options close to home, more competition will return to the market, and more of the value of American-raised beef will stay in rural communities," Rollins said, adding that a strong, independent processing sector is essential to U.S. food security.
The largest single award goes to Plainview Beef Company LLC of Peabody, which will receive $2 million to renovate and equip a newly acquired processing facility, including processing equipment, refrigeration and cold storage, packaging and labeling equipment, smokehouse and beef stick production lines. The other nine awards range from $116,280 to $250,000: Diamond A Processing LLC of Junction City ($182,094), Hat Creek Butchery of Plains ($249,367), Meade Locker & Processing LLC of Meade ($249,711), Meatworks of Kansas LLC of Riley ($228,750), Mitchell Bolling of Moran ($197,338), Randel Inc. of Grinnell ($249,845), Stroot's Meat Company, Inc. of Goddard and Mulvane ($250,000), T & W Meat Co. LLC of Kingman ($250,000) and Walnut Valley Packing LLC of El Dorado ($116,280), for a total of $3,973,385.
Rural Business-Cooperative Service Administrator Gimmie Jo Jansonius said the Kansas investments build on the President's executive order on promoting fair competition in livestock markets and expanding market access for American meat producers, and that USDA is working to give farmers and ranchers a better chance to compete, increasing local food options and lowering costs for Kansas families.
MPPEP is managed by USDA Rural Development's Rural Business-Cooperative Service and provides grants to help eligible independent processors expand capacity. USDA says it has awarded more than $200 million to independent businesses under the program, and that the projects have created thousands of jobs across the country.
Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：位于 Washington 的美国农业部总部大楼（资料图）。 / Photo: The U.S. Department of Agriculture headquarters in Washington (file photo).
