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MOTT, N.D. (KXNET) — John Roswech with South 40 Beef announced on Facebook that after about two years, the plant has decided to shut its doors.
KX News talked with Roswech on Wednesday, who says he fell in love with North Dakota on a pheasant hunting trip years ago and wanted to start a business where he could offer USDA-certified black Angus beef shipped directly to customers. Roswech says despite finding several loyal customers here, they struggled with operating costs at the beef plant.
“My wife and I started discussing this late last year, toward the end of the year, of how we can make this financially work,” said Roswech. “And really, we just wanted to get it to break even.
Right now, Roswech says he’s trying to find a new potential partner in hopes of saving the business — but even if he can’t, Roswech says he and his wife have no plans to leave North Dakota.
KX News also contacted the USDA Office of Rural Development this week. A spokesperson says South 40 Beef recently received a $471,525 grant from USDA Rural Development through the Meat and Poultry Processing Expansion Program, with the goal of doubling their cattle processing capabilities. At this time, none of the funds have been dispersed, nor has the grant been de-obligated.
When talking about the funding, the spokesperson described South 40 Beef LLC as a USDA-inspected beef processing plant in Mott, North Dakota. Grant funds will be used to increase cooler and fabrication space to increase capacity, and the expansion will result in more than doubling the number of cattle processed per month, as well as a 50% increase in the workforce. This investment will add local capacity, and reduce the time and distance cattle producers currently have to travel.
