CORVALLIS, Ore. — While fruit and vegetable producers have sought out avenues for their fresh picks, producers of meat are searching as well.

Earlier this month, the Niche Meat Processor Assistance Network (NMPAN) at Oregon State University held a Webinar to address the logistics of online sales and shipping of meat. NMPAN is a national community of practice focused on the long-term viability of the small and mid-sized processors who are essential to the local and regional meat and poultry sectors.

Panelists included Matthew Lawrence of Marble Creek Farmstead and Marble City Meats in Alabama; Adrienne Larrew of Corner Post Meats in Colorado; and Brian Brozovic of Painted Hills Natural Beef in Oregon. The moderator was Rebecca Thistlethwaite, Director of NMPAN. Thistlethwaite is author of two farming books: “Farms with a Future” and “The New Livestock Farmer.”

“At a time with this Covid-19 pandemic we see this as an opportunity to connect our niche meats to hungry consumers,” Thistlethwaite said. “This pandemic is showing us the importance of diversified, decentralized, dispersed food production and processing. There is a growing number of U.S. grassfed and pasture-raised livestock and poultry producers who sell direct to consumer by either shipping or front door delivery. It’s a win-win for everyone.”

Questions were aplenty during this informal, 70-minute Webinar and most listeners were concerned about the physical sale of their meats and the time it gets to the consumers.

“You can ship or mail meats out of the state if your meats are processed in a federally-inspected plant,” one panelist recommended, “but you cannot ship or mail meats outside the state if your meats are processed at a state-inspected facility.”

When selling frozen, farm-raised meat directly from a farm one must obtain a Food Processing Plant License. Those can be obtained from one’s local health department.

Frozen meats, they said, can be safely shipped by U.S. Mail, UPS, FedEx or other private carriers using overnight or second-day shipping. They recommend packing meat in a Styrofoam cooler (two inches thick) to keep meats frozen, and packed with dry ice to keep the shipment cold. The package is to be labeled “Perishable” and “Keep Frozen”. Shipping unfrozen meat or meat products is never recommended.

“And do not send packages at the end of the week,” Brozovic said. “Send them at the beginning of the week so they do not sit in the post office or mailing facility over the weekend.”

Online sales was another hot topic. The design of one’s online store was discussed and most agreed that the styles are endless and preferences can vary.  The digital marketplace offers another opportunity for livestock and poultry farmers to turn a profit.

“Consumers are always looking to get food from farms to their tables, but they don’t all have access,” says Mike Salguero, founder of online meat retailer ButcherBox, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. “E-commerce can play a vital role in helping consumers get back to nature while showcasing farms that are doing really great things.”

Designing webpages was foremost in the minds of many callers. The panelists agreed that such webpages can be very simplistic or very elaborate. Regardless, they said, the webpage should be attention-getting and detail-oriented.

“Webpages must have exceptional photos and clear weights to customers know exactly how much product they are ordering for the posted price,” Larrew said. “Home delivery of dairy products seems like a return to the past, but home delivery is now part of the marketing strategies for most major retailers. Using local advertising, word-of-mouth, promotions at the farmers market and the on-farm stand, producers are spreading the word that home delivery is not a thing of the past.”

Also discussed that day were: setting up an online store, accepting payments, updating inventory, meat selection, subscriptions versus ala-carte orders and costs.