It’s hunting season and the Delta Junction meat plant is humming
Published Monday, October 5, 2009
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Stumble It!DELTA, Alaska — It started with 15 head of Galloway cattle he brought up from North Dakota. At the time, Doug McCollum was owner and operator of Delta Concrete. But his heart was in ranching, and he was testing the waters to see if a market existed for locally raised and processed meat.
It is difficult to have one without the other, though, and Delta lacked a meat processing plant. That did not stop the enterprising McCollum family. They started out by selling the hardy, cold weather-tolerant cattle to a small group of customers, then spending their evening hours butchering and processing them. It didn’t take long for McCollum to realize a local market existed and that he was rapidly outgrowing his nighttime operation.
“We opened up Delta Meat and Sausage in November of 1997,” said Jeannie Pinkelman, daughter of Doug and Cathy McCollum. “McKinley Meat Packing plant in Palmer had just burned down, and a local hog operation was getting ready to send a batch of hogs down there.”
Northwest Livestock and Cattle Company, McCollum’s handle for their farm operation, grew along with Delta Meat and Sausage. They now process approximately 175 head of beef cattle and 300 hogs from their farm each year. The hogs came into play when the family acquired a sow and piglets. The hog operation rapidly expanded, and hogs are now their predominant processing animal. Add exotic animals raised locally — yak, elk, and buffalo — and the plant stays busy all year.
But nothing compares to the rush they see during hunting season. With their meticulously clean operation and customer-friendly atmosphere, it didn’t take long for Delta Meat and Sausage to build up a loyal hunting clientele.
Tom Cheeseman, a former Delta Junction resident now residing in North Pole, still brings his wild game to the plant every year for processing. This year, he showed up with a cake in hand, thanking the plant for their service.
“Their service is great, the people are friendly, and their sausage is the best,” said Cheeseman.
“Hunting season is what sustains us during the slow months,” Pinkelman said. “It starts Aug. 1 and runs through mid-October.”
“Subsistence hunters and folks bringing in caribou from up north start coming in early August,” she continued. “The crew here really kicks into gear, and we usually end up hiring a few more part-time workers during the rush season. We have three meat cutters and seven full-time employees out on the floor.
“On our peak days, our workers put up 4,300 pounds of meat but normally average 3,500 pounds,” she continued. “Moose, caribou, sheep, and bear. We process them all. But did this operation happen overnight? No, we crept, crawled, walked, and then ran. It was all one day at a time.”
Community Discussion
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We have used them for many years and they have proccessed my muskox, moose, bear, and caribou. They are a very top notch place and have NEVER had an issue with the end product or any lost meat. I am just affraid that at some point they will get to popular.
Keep up the GREAT work Jeannie and crew!
A very nice and informative article!
Now, how about an update on our local processor on the Old Rich ? Delta is too far for some of us to haul our game.
Tanana Valley Meats?
bukuof ????
Hilda, heard from a couple of friends who took their moose to Tanana Valley Meats last year - said they are sure they didn't get the same moose back. They took it in clean and got back meat with leaves and hair. Then to top it off last year one of them brought in just shy of 400 pounds and got 105 pounds back.
I take my moose down to Delta Meat and they deliver it back to Fairbanks when its ready. They have been processing my game meat since 1999 always with great service. Jeannie and Cathy do an awesome job...only complaint is now you have to make an appointment to bring in your moose since they are so busy - a small inconvenience for the quality product you get in return.
Huh. I called and inquired about a side of beef and was told they didn't have any at the time but would call. That was a year ago. Stopped by on Saturday on my way home from Tok to pick up a 50lb box of beef. Nope didn't have any. And didn't have time to speak to me about a time frame either. Good thing the hunting season keeps them going through the slow months. Their sales skills stink.
darn everyone found out my secret place now it will be jammed pack and I can't get my meat in. they do an excellent job on the pepper sticks, you have to get them. Delta's best kept secret
I love Delta Meat. We pick up beef and pork as often as we can. Definitely worth the trip. I grew up around the Pinkelmans and McCollums and they are a hard working bunch who doesn't do anything half a**ed. As long as they are open they will have my business.
does anyone know if the cattle are grass or grain fed?
We recently redeemed a gift certificate, got some ground beef and sausage, etc. It was the best we have ever bought in Alaska. Highly recommended business.
I too love Delta Meats products.
halt - you need to understand that they have WAY more buyers than they have meat to sell. Its up to you to keep calling if you want meat. Its worth it.
Anyone know what's the story on the herd of cattle in the field at 3 mile CHSR? There must be 200 head of cattle out their and no barn in sight.
A great place. Good for them that they are getting publicity but...now they will be busier than ever. Bad for me! Smoked pork chops will be even rarer!!! :(
Jeanie, guess who!!
I began taking my moose meat there when they were still at the concrete plant. They are the best in the state and have earned their reputation through hard work and perseverence. It is harder to get my meat in there now but I will wait the day or two because they do it right. The pepper and teriyaki sticks, italian sausage, bratwurst and breakfast sausage is the best. Keep up the good work Ms Jeannie and Ms Cathy. See you next year!!!
Power_Of_The_O
At three mile CHSR. , the grass has been getting shorter for quite a while . It may be , that the cattle have lost a lot of their summer gain , before winter sets in ? Doesn't take long for that weight to go down when the grass gets short and feed is lacking . Been a long time since I was on the farm , maybe I am missing something . Then again , maybe this is what it takes to have "Lean Meat" , with no fat .
Barks - there are a lot of calves out there, I don't think of Fairbanks being a big veal market
JaneBeans,
The majority of the cattle at Delta Meats are naturally grown angus cross, and mostly grass-fed, in my past experience/knowledge..
There are some farmers who sell whole grain-fed beef at a reasonable price; some quite heavily grained and fatted.
Farmers and butchers are like any other trade; an honest and skilled one is worth their weight in gold.
We've had both grain-fed and grass-fed, as well as honest help, and not so honest, and have stuck to grain-fed for many years. It's typically got a good deal more suet on it, for sure, but if you've got several friends with moose to add suet to the burger from, there's sometimes enough on a whole angus to do the burger from two to four moose.
And nicely done grain-fed angus suet adds a flavor to moose burger like you wouldn't believe. we add ~12-15% when we do that.
Some of the folks who advertise grass-fed, if they were more forthright, mean a lot of local 'scrub' was grazed upon, with -some- high-grade hay (timothy, alfalfa, etc), and a fair amount of broam hay. Others who advertise grass-fed cattle mean quality feed, but without concentrated grain being fed regularly.
I have my own 'meat-cutter' who does our meat while I wrap. He's a pro who takes time off from his work (running a meat shop) in the Fall (or if we come later with domestic critters, or a critter from a late season hunt). He's cheaper than any of the larger outfits, no longer takes new customers as a rule, has been doing my family's meats for ~20 years, and you're wrapping your own meat while he cuts your animal, so you're absolutely certain that you're getting your own meat back, and that there's zero 'high-grading' going on.
I like Delta's work and products, and they're honest people in my well-founded opinion, but they're often out of my price range, and I like the grain-fed beef, if we're doing beef at all.
I can trim the fat off of a grain-fed angus, and still have tender meat, but I can't make a grass-fed critter more tender without either running it through a cube-steak machine, or beating the dickens out of it with a tenderizing hammer.
Personal preference, I guess.
As to those who eat grass-fed beef out of political or ecological concerns, I figure that the barley silos in Valdez failed decades ago, and no one in a third-world country's expecting Delta barley anyway.
Again, a matter of personal preferences, for sure.
After that long ramble, I figured that in fairness I should add that Delta Meats turned a friend's hind-quarter of young black bear into the tastiest, finest ham I've ever ingested. Nothing shy of %^*&*&% incredible.
If he's reading this, no, I ate the piece you gave me. It didn't make it home to find its way between two slices of bread. It got eaten straighht up, though I think I recall my wife getting -one- good bite of it.
I have been using Delta Meats exclusively for some time. They do excellent work. And the teriyaki and other snack sticks are hard to beat. I try and take excellent care of my meat and I really want to get that one back. Other places in town used to freeze and toss the stuff on pallets and you were never sure to get your meat returned. It would be great if there was someone close to Delta Meats in quality locally, as they are overbooked and waiting a week or more is not uncommon late in the season. That said it would take a lot to get me to take my meat anywhere else.
Pat
Delta Meat & Sausage: This family built an excellent business from the ground up by their own hard work. I heard from a friend in Nebraska that they went down there and toured locker plants to learn when they were building their plant in Delta. I always take my moose meat there because they take as good care of my meat as I do. Unlike a North Pole company that got government grants and still went broke because they didn't do a good job with people's meat.
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