Meat+Poultry - August 2019 - 51

J

ust east of the Kansas City metropolitan
area on US Highway 50 sits Valley Oaks
Steak Co. The small, vertically integrated
processor was built in 2016, employs 70 people
and slaughters about 60 head a day in its
50,000-sq.-ft. facility. It was renovated last year,
but size and location aren't what make Valley
Oaks especially unique and interesting.
"It's a completely different type of system
than what anybody is really used to seeing
being on the same campus with our feedlot,"
says Jake Huddleston, operations manager
at Valley Oaks. "It really sets a unique set of
challenges for us, but then it also sets a really
unique set of opportunities the way that we
can actually completely control the animal
all the way through the system and out to
the consumer."

Photos: Sosland Publishing Company - Bob Sims

WORKING THE SYSTEM
Valley Oaks buys calves from Missouribased producers and prides itself on keeping
everything as close to home as possible. This
not only keeps the carbon footprint small by
eliminating long transit, but makes it cost
effective for both Valley Oaks and the farmers
who need to truck their cattle around to
processors and feedlot operators.
"We have such a high-quality seed stock
of cattle here that are going outside the state
that we're able to capitalize on," Huddleston
says. "These guys aren't having to pay as much
in transportation costs to get them to Grand
Island to get him out to Kansas, that really
sucks up a lot of the profit."
Huddleston adds that Valley Oaks still pays
more than a major packer due to its size and
lets producers make profitable stops on the
way to longer destinations. In addition, Valley
Oaks puts itself and those producers in the
best position to "keep it local," a trend that is
quickly becoming a consumer demand.
Valley Oaks utilizes local suppliers for more
than calves, as well. The company sources
kiln-dried lumber for the bedding in all its
onsite barns.
"We're sourcing every single wood chip
that we can possibly get in the western part of
Missouri," Huddleston says.
The Valley Oaks method also creates a
more flavorful beef product. Once harvested,
employees move carcasses around the rails by
hand. There is no hurry, carcasses age a little

on the rail. From harvest to the blast-freezing
process and through Huddleston's sorting,
animals usually hang between three to five
days before fabrication.
"We're allowing the animal to go through
rigor on the rail and allowing a little bit of
evaporation," Huddleston says. "That creates
concentrations of a little bit of flavor. We let
it age a little bit. We call it our hybrid process.
It's taking the best of both worlds from the old
school, traditional locker method and the new
packing methods and kind of finding the best
equilibrium between the two."
As the carcass moves down the rail for
fabrication the first stop is the chuck line
where the chuck roll and brisket are removed.
Next stop is the rib line for both bone in and
boneless ribeyes, depending on customer spec
for the day. The short rib gets taken off on the
rib line as well. The next line is the sirloin for
tenderloins, strips and sometimes t-bones. Last
is the round line for shank meat and tri tip.
One more set of lines for fat and trim come off
the mainlines.
Another special attribute of the Valley Oaks
system is the slower pace allows for a focus
on quality characteristics and a versatility that
larger volume producers just can't manage.
"I mean if there's anything anybody wants
to do, I could do it," Huddleston says. "That's
really what makes us unique is the ability to
change up on the fly and be able to transition
throughout the day."
Huddleston and his team create daily
schedules about a week in advance but remain
flexible on the line.

"We're one
of the most
highly recycled
industries in
the world. If we
can turn this
into another
product and
keep that
carbon in the
ground, it's
just another
check mark in
the box."
- JAKE HUDDLESTON

OUTSIDE THE PLANT

Above: Valley Oaks Steak
Co. sells premium beef
to foodservice, retail,
online and through its
own onsite storefront.

Before cattle become beef, they live and eat
and grow, and Valley Oaks makes that time
as comfortable as it possibly can for them.
They're not prodded or rushed, sometimes

Opposite: Carcasses at
Valley Oaks usually hang
between three and five
days before fabrication.

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