Davids Celebrates Federal Investment to Strengthen Food Supply Chain, Lower Grocery Costs

Today, Representative Sharice Davids celebrated the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s new investments in Kansas that will strengthen food supply chains, increase independent meat and poultry processing capacity, and lower food costs. Through two grant programs, created by the Davids-supported American Rescue Plan, meat and poultry processers across Kansas will receive more than $10.5 million. These actions will help lower food costs by spurring competition and strengthening supply chains.

“During the pandemic, supply chain disruptions and reliance on foreign-made goods led to higher grocery prices and uncertainty for the farmers and producers in Kansas who contribute to our state’s largest economic engine,” said Davids. “Despite recent progress in strengthening our supply chains, grocery costs still must come down for hardworking families. These new federal investments in Kansa processing will lower those costs by increasing productivity and spurring competition.”

“These investments in local meat and poultry processing businesses will bolster employment opportunities in our rural communities, strengthen the food supply chain, and enhance our farmers’ and ranchers’ opportunities to add value to their livestock,” said Mike Beam, Secretary, Kansas Department of Agriculture. “Strengthening these small businesses will also provide additional access and more choices for consumers.”

The new awards are provided through two federal grant programs that include the:

• Meat and Poultry Processing Expansion Program (MPPEP)
  • Top End LLC - $2,445,654
    • To build a new USDA-inspected beef and hog processing facility in western Kansas that will create 19 new jobs.
  • Real Kansas Meats LLC - $6,871,380
    • To build and equip a slaughter and fabrication facility, serving 100 producers and creating 117 new full-time jobs.
• Local Meat Capacity (Local MCap) Grant Program
  • Meade Locker & Processing, LLC (Meade, KS) - $250,000
    • To upgrade equipment to double beef and pork processing, improve safety, create 4-5 new local jobs.
  • MD UHL dba Allen Meat Processing LLC (Allen, KS) - $139,429.38
    • To upgrade meat processing capacity, streamline operations, and improve food safety, increasing efficiency by an estimated 75 percent.
  • Simon Meat Locker LLC (Olsburg, KS) - $241,500
    • To increase freezer space by 100 percent, quadruple ground meat and sausage processing efficiency, and improve worker safety and humane treatment.
  • Moeders Meats (WaKeeney, KS) - $175,755
    • To upgrade equipment to serve 75 to 100 more local farmers and ranchers and purchase up to 300 percent more products from local producers.
  • Rainbow Organic Farms dba Good Natured Family Farms (Bronson, KS) - $169,881.96
    • To purchase additional cold storage capacity while upgrading slaughter and packaging equipment, increasing processing capacity by 500 heads of beef per year.
  • Krehbiels Specialty Meats, Inc. (McPherson, KS) - $250,000
    • To install a brine injector, smokehouse, patty machine, and meat slicer, increasing processing capacity by 25 percent and creating up to 20 new jobs.

While our economy is experiencing record job creation, the cost of groceries remains high. To help lower those costs, Davids, who was named a "Champion of the Shippers," has worked to shore up our domestic supply chains, which eases inflationary pressures for Kansans. Davids’ additional work to lower grocery costs and strengthen supply chains include:

• Introducing bipartisan legislation to protect America's food and agriculture supply chain and address China's growing influence in critical agricultural sectors.
• Voting to pass the Lower Food and Fuel Costs Act to shore up the food and agriculture supply chain, assure fair competition in the meat and poultry sectors, and lower food and gasoline costs.
• Holding multipleroundtables with Kansas business, manufacturing, and technology leaders on how recent legislation to improve supply chains will help boost their businesses' financial security.
• Cosponsoring the Ocean Shipping Reform Act, a new law aimed at addressing supply chain snags and reducing dependence on goods produced outside of the United States.
• Meeting with President Biden at the White House to urge him to pass a supply chain and economic package that invests in American manufacturing.
• Working a "Sharice's Shift" at a local Price Chopper, where she helped store employees unload deliveries from shipping trucks, stock grocery shelves, and bag groceries.

As a member of the U.S. House Agriculture Committee, Davids is also working to craft a bipartisan Farm Bill that supports Kansas farmers and lowers costs, including by securing agricultural supply chains to keep costs low and support our state’s largest economic sector. Davids recently hosted USDA Deputy Secretary Xochitl Torres Small, Senator Pat Roberts, and other policymakers to discuss the successes and challenges of Kansas’ farmers and producers.

WATCH: Davids inquires about the USDA’s efforts to lower grocery costs for Kansas families

Davids previously hosted USDA Under Secretary Jenny Lester Moffitt to highlight lowering costs for processing, packaging, and consumer purchasing of locally sourced meats. She also joined other Kansas lawmakers in a bipartisan push for investigations into anti-competitive behavior in the meatpacking industry.