By: Jennifer Rook
We are happy to debut this latest feature; "The Basin's Dirtiest Jobs". We hope to highlight some of the dirtiest jobs in the Basin and introduce you to some of the hard working folks from our community who get dirty every day or have to deal with undesirable substances, perform nasty tasks or deal with all manner of muck, slime, dirt, guts, oil; you name it. If it's a Dirty Job, we want to tell you all about it.
Meat Processor
It's not the most dirty job around as far as getting really grimy, filthy and dirty, but meat processing is not a job for the faint of heart. It's a job that not many would ever choose and it can be pretty nasty, mentally taxing, and physically exhausting. The title "meat processor" definitely qualifies as one of the "Basin's Dirtiest Jobs".
Becoming a meat processor isn't something Chuck McKinnon dreamed about doing his whole life, but he definitely saw a need for a quality processor in the Roosevelt/Altamont area about 45 years ago when he began doing "farm kills" for folks in the Arcadia area where he lives. He opened up Chuck's Meat in Arcadia. His son-in-law and daughter Ryan and Julie Ann Harrison now run the successful business and say that it's really not as "dirty" as one would imagine. "There are days when I'll come home and need to change clothes immediately, particularly on slaughter days" Ryan admits, "but on the whole it's not that bad."
Perhaps the hardest aspect of the trade is the mental side of things. Steve Reynolds of Roosevelt Meats grew up helping his father at Superior Meat in Vernal, (now owned by his brother, DJ Reynolds) but it doesn't make slaughtering any easier. "It's definitely not a fun job." Steve says of slaughtering, "but it's necessary. I just try to get through it as quickly as possible. It is a little tough mentally."
Both Roosevelt Meat and Chuck's Meat process big game as well as domestic animals so their busiest time of the year begins in August after the Duchesne County Fair and at the start of archery season. "We'll run between 1,000 and 1,500 big game animals through here during hunting season." Ryan reports. "It's just crazy busy around here until the end of hunting season."
Big game, beef, pork, mutton and swine all come through our local meat processing plants. Kathie Harrison helps out at Chuck's Meat and says she isn't too bothered by meat processing. "I love meat." Kathie says. "I love to eat it and I have always been around it my whole life so it doesn't bother me to cut it up. The only thing that really bothers me is when people try to bring big game in here that hasn't been cared for properly. That's when things get a little gross. We have seen some pretty nasty things try to come through here, but really it's not bad at all. We keep it very, very clean so that helps. In fact, I sometimes go crazy with the bleach and the guys all know when I've been cleaning because they can smell the bleach outside the building before they even walk in."
The men and women who own those shops have been practicing their craft for years and some consider it an art. Some locals even say that nobody cuts up a more beautiful prime rib than Don Anderson at Uintah Packing in Vernal. Many processors also do custom orders and typically process each animal according to different specifications. It's definitely not a job for just anyone, that's for sure, but we definitely appreciate the work these folks do and salute them as we cut into a juicy, tender, tasty pork chop and they carry on with one of the Basin's Dirtiest Jobs.
If you have ideas for "Dirtiest Jobs" please send them to jennifer@theedgemagazine.org with contact information if you've got it.
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