Food

The Agricultural Utilization Research Institute (AURI) and the United States Department of Agriculture Agricultural Marketing Services (USDA-AMS) are collaborating to ensure a viable local and regional small-to-medium-scale protein processing industry, utilizing a variety of support mechanisms. With the announcement of several new federal and state programs supporting local and regional meat and poultry processing, it is imperative to identify the needs of industry and address as part of an effort to strengthen the ongoing competitiveness of these facilities and businesses.

This collaborative project focuses on four key objectives with specific deliverables to support the United States’ food system. A regional advisory taskforce, comprised of representatives from the five-state region (Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin), will guide the deliverables.

Regional Advisory Taskforce

• Convene partners for a regional collaboration to review and advise on cooperative agreement activities.
• Leverage networks to ensure maximum reach for each of the pillars of work.
• Work together to develop deliverables that address the needs of the regional protein processing sector.

Finance Working Group

• Generate a feasibility framework of key business and financial metrics and high-risk variables to serve as a guide to accelerate a local and regional protein processors’ ability to start or expand a livestock processing business.
• Establish a road map outlining the fundamentals of proper due diligence on developing or expanding a protein processing facility/business.
• Investigate the feasibility of creating a financial benchmarking tool of local and regional meat processing businesses for financial institutions to use, including identification of key variables and metrics, risk areas and ROI expectations.
• Explore ongoing reporting structures to better understand how processors perform compared to peers on key variables to identify potential improvement areas for profitability.
• Help identify essential expenditures and permits businesses need to consider before expanding or constructing new processing sites.

Needs Assessment and Literature Review

• Conduct focus groups and one-on-one interviews with industry representatives to prioritize gaps existing in the protein supply chain.
• Conduct a literature review for documentation and exploration of challenges and opportunities related to enhancing resiliency in the livestock processing sector.

Resource Map

• Develop an online database of available physical and intellectual resources for the protein processing industry.
• Identify existing resources that are available and/or underutilized in the Upper Midwest region for the livestock processing industry to reference.
• Categorize resources based on resource type: education and training, legal and regulatory assistance, financial assistance, business development assistance, technical and product development assistance, policy/advocacy, engineering assistance, market assistance.

Technical Assistance and Business Development Assistance

• Support the supply chain through services and programs that best serve the sector.
• Engage protein processors by creating three short courses.
• Technical assistance will comprise of activities related to labeling, packaging, HACCP plans and product development.
• Business development planning will comprise of services related to market access, infrastructure, policy/advocacy, input supply, mentoring, feasibility studies and business plans.

Associated Deliverables:

• Funding Sources
  • Meat and Poultry State Resources
  • Meat and Poultry Federal Resources
  • Guide to Meat and Poultry Federal Resources
• Resource Database

AURI’s dual-inspected laboratory facilities in Marshall, MN are available to clients for hands-on testing and development. Click on each facility below to get more information on each labs capabilities.

• AURI Meat Laboratory 
• AURI Product Sensory and Evaluation Laboratory 

In addition to laboratory capabilities the AURI meat science team offers additional resources to assist clients which include:

• HACCP/ Food Safety and Inspection Type Coaching
• Scale up
• Product Formulation and Validation
• Packaging
• Troubleshooting

Also, AURI’s facilities provide the following equipment items:

• Cube steak tenderizer
• 5 and 10 lb verticle stuffers
• Warner-Bratzler Meat Shear
• Vacuum Mixer
• Grinder
• Bandsaw
• 50 lb pneumatic stuffer
• 30lb bowl chopper
• Brine pump

Learn how AURI can assist your operation by reading about some of our previous work.  Browse the latest research reports and webinars that have resulted from collaborations with AURI Food clients – and search our archives.

• Landscape View of Minnesota’s Halal + Kosher Meat Market
• Seeking Fresh Ideas for Protein Innovation: Announcing the 2021 Bold Open Reverse Pitch
• Fields of Innovation: Diving Beneath the Surface of Minnesota’s Aquaculture Industry
• More Sustainable Packaging Solutions for Ground Beef
• Increased Sustainability in Fresh Beef Packaging to Prevent Food Waste in a Meaningful Way for Consumers

AURI Connects Webinars

• Regenerative beef webinar: https://auri.org/events/stewardship-and-sustainability-regenerative-beef-production-in-mn-webinar/
• Educational and Technical Opportunities for Meat Processing and Slaughter (Webinar)
• https://auri.org/events/opportunities-and-challenges-in-minnesotas-aquaculture-industry-webinar-wednesday/
• https://auri.org/events/sustainable-packaging-options-for-ground-beef-webinar-wednesday/

Learn about the importance of implementing a proper HACCP plan in your facility with helpful videos. Overview of Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points and AURI videos on each of the key principles.

HACCP stands for Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points. It is a systematic preventive approach to food safety from biological, chemical, and physical hazards in production processes that can cause the finished product to be unsafe, and designs measurements to reduce these risks to a safe level.

• HACCP food safety overview
• Conduct a hazard analysis
• Identify critical control points
• Establish critical limits for each critical control point
• Establish critical control point monitoring requirements
• Establish corrective actions
• Establish procedures for ensuring the HACCP system is working as intended
• Establish record keeping procedures

Below you will find a library of 50 downloadable nutrition facts panels in PDF form based on AGC member products and generated using the US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) Food Composition Database or other verified data sources.

Below you will find a library of 50 downloadable nutrition facts panels in PDF form based on AGC member products and generated using the US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) Food Composition Database or other verified data sources.

 

Milled Products:

Barley Flour, Whole Grain

Bread Flour, High Extraction

Bread Flour, Whole Grain

Buckwheat Flour, Whole Grain

Cornmeal, White/Grits

Cornmeal, White Whole Grain

Cornmeal, Yellow/Polenta

Cornmeal, Yellow/Grits

Cornmeal, Yellow Whole Grain

Einkorn Flour, Whole Grain

Emmer Flour, Whole Grain

Kernza Flour, Whole Grain

Oat Flour, Whole Grain

Rye Flour

Sorghum Flour, Whole Grain

Spelt Flour, White

Spelt Flour, Whole Grain

Teff Flour, Whole Grain

Wheat Flour, All Purpose Unenriched

Wheat Flour, Whole Grain Pastry

Wheat Flour, Turkey Red High Extraction

 

Whole Grain Products:

Arikara, Whole Bean

Barley, Hulled Grain

Black Turtle, Whole Bean

Buckwheat, Whole Grain

Corn, White or Yellow Popcorn

Corn, White or Yellow

Cranberry, Whole Bean

Flaxseed, Whole Grain

Kernza, Grain

Kidney, Whole Bean

Millet, Grain

Oats, Grain

Small Red, Whole Bean

Sorghum, Whole Grain

Soybean, Grain

Spelt, Grain

Sunflower, Dried Kernels

Teff, Grain

Wheat, Hard Red Spring Grain

Wheat, Hard Red Winter Grain

Wheat, Hard White Spring Grain

Wheat, Soft Red Winter Grain

Wheat, Soft White Winter Grain

Wild Rice, Grain

*Disclaimer: The nutrition facts label provided by AURI is calculated based on nutrient ingredient library values. Any changes to the product blends will impact the nutrition facts. While AURI makes every effort to provide accurate nutrition information, the brand owner, according to the FDA, is solely responsible for the accuracy of the label. For confirmation, consult a certified laboratory to validate nutritional values through product testing AURI shall not be held liable for any damage resulting from the sale, handling, contact, use, or consumption of any product.