ChopLocal

Online Meat Marketplace Creates Farm-to-Fork Connection

By Darcy Dougherty Maulsby | Photos by Joseph L. Murphy

From shoes to home décor to pet supplies, consumers have grown accustomed to the ease, selection and control of e-commerce. But when it comes to buying groceries online – especially meat products – many consumers aren’t keen on handing over control of specific product selection to the stranger who is fulfilling their grocery order.

With this concern in mind, a new, Iowa-based, e-commerce site called ChopLocal gives consumers the convenience of online shopping with easy options to choose specific meat products.

“We’re making an alternative supply chain that gives consumers options, while allowing them to learn where food comes from and support local farmers,” says Katie Olthoff, ChopLocal’s co-founder.

ChopLocal is a one-stop-shop where consumers can buy high-quality meats directly from farmers and small businesses like meat processors and butcher shops. Each vendor has its own microstore at choplocal.com, where products are for sale and the story of the producer’s farm or business is on display. Orders can be placed online and shipped directly to customers.

“ChopLocal helps consumers know exactly who they are ordering from,” Olthoff says. “The best way to describe it is the ‘Etsy of meat.’”

ChopLocal provides high-quality cuts of meat to consumers through an online marketplace.

ChopLocal provides high-quality cuts of meat to consumers through an online marketplace.

Making an Idea a Reality

ChopLocal is the creation of Jared Achen, a fourth-generation farmer from Wayland. He first started exploring the idea of an e-commerce site for meat when he took an agricultural entrepreneurship class at Iowa State University. After earning his ag business degree, Achen returned home to farm, where he raises turkeys, corn and soybeans with his family.

When the pandemic exploded in March 2020, Achen thought back to his e-commerce idea, especially as COVID-related shutdowns at meat-packing plants left farmers with full-grown animals and nowhere to market.

“We saw disruptions in demand for the turkeys we raise,” says Achen, who notes that most of his turkeys are processed into deli meat. “As different areas of the United States went into lockdown, fewer people were eating at restaurants and hotels. The decrease in demand trickled down to farmers.”

While farmers had reduced markets for their livestock, more consumers struggled to get the meat they wanted from grocery stores. “I knew there had to be a better system to connect the farmers who have meat with the consumers who want it,” says Achen, whose father helped found West Liberty Foods, a turkey processing plant in West Liberty.

By May 2020, Achen officially started ChopLocal and began signing up vendors. The online marketplace, which includes beef, pork, lamb and rabbit offerings, launched in December 2020. The site has options for every customer, from pre-cooked, heat-and-serve cuts to premium cuts of meat to snacks like beef sticks and jerky.

Among the vendors is Brewer Family Farms from Dallas Center. The Brewers have been raising cattle and pigs in Dallas County for five generations. An array of products, from New York strip steaks to smoked Windsor pork chops to ground beef, are available through their ChopLocal microstore. “Our goal is to produce and provide wholesome, flavorful, locally grown beef and pork products that our family has enjoyed for generations,” says Emily (Brewer) Wynn.

The convenience of ChopLocal is a plus for consumers and farmers, adds Wynn. “We’ve been looking to expand our meat business to reach markets we couldn’t access on our own,” she says. “ChopLocal has helped us sell to customers across Iowa and beyond, including Denver, Colorado.”

Convenience + Quality = Trust

ChopLocal allows consumers to order from multiple farms and businesses at once. There is no fee to join. In addition, shipping is free with an order of $150 or more from a single vendor.

Nick Lenters, owner of Old Station Craft Meats in Waukee, credits ChopLocal with helping grow his customer base since opening his business in December 2020. “ChopLocal is broadening our market outside of the Des Moines metro area,” says Lenters, who grew up on a farm near Sioux Center.

Nick Lenters, owner of Old Station Craft Meats in Waukee.

Calvin Schnucker, a butcher with Old Station Craft Meats, makes various cuts of meat at the store in Waukee.

Old Station Craft Meats offers beef, pork, poultry, lamb, turkey, duck and bison through a store located on the downtown triangle in the heart of Waukee. A number of these products can also be purchased through ChopLocal.

“At the grocery store, the meat producer’s story can be lost on the customer,” Lenters says. “This isn’t the case with ChopLocal, which is dedicated to educating shoppers about where their meat comes from and offering premium products.”

As more vendors set up microstores on ChopLocal, an even wider variety of products will be available in 2021. “Our vendors are fully invested in providing the best products possible,” Olthoff says. “ChopLocal’s goal is to connect customers with convenience, quality and trustworthy products from local Iowa farms and small businesses.”

BBQ Bacon-Wrapped Pork Loin Strips

• 6 boneless thick-cut pork chops (about 2 pounds)

• 1 tablespoon seasoned salt, divided

• 2 pounds thin-sliced bacon

• BBQ sauce of choice

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Place a wire rack on a rimmed baking sheet and coat with nonstick spray.

Slice each pork chop lengthwise into three even strips, then season with half the seasoned salt. Wrap a strip of bacon around each pork strip, securing the ends with a toothpick. Sprinkle the bacon-wrapped strips with the remaining seasoned salt and arrange on the prepared rack.

Roast for 20 minutes, then glaze with BBQ sauce. Return to the oven for an additional 5 minutes or until the glaze is thick and shiny.

Serve the glazed strips warm with additional BBQ sauce on the side.

Serves: 10

Source: Cristen Clark, Food & Swine

Nutrition per serving: 571 calories, 47 g total fat, 118 mg cholesterol, 802 mg sodium, 1 g carbohydrate, 0 g fiber, 33 g protein

ChopLocal is offering free shipping for Fresh Pickings magazine readers. Visit choplocal.com and use code FRESHPICKS at checkout.

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