Heinkel’s Packing Co. in Decatur has been around since 1912, when German immigrant Albert Heinkel started making sausage in the back of his store. Albert’s sons moved the business into a larger facility on North 22nd Street in 1945. Heinkel’s continues today, owned and operated by the fourth generation of the family that includes President Wes Heinkel and Vice President Dennis Heinkel. Heinkel’s offers a number of meat products, along with deer processing. Products are sold over the counter, through distributors, and are also available at grocery stores and restaurants.
Jones Meat and Locker in Jacksonville has been family-owned and operated since 1943 by three generations of the Jones family. After 81 years, new owners Nuss Partners, LLC recently took over the business. They plan to continue providing top-notch service to the Jacksonville area. Jones Meat and Locker offers high-quality meat processing and packaging of beef, pork, and deer. The retail store is stacked with meat, chicken, fish, and other grocery items.
Turasky Meats was founded on the north end of Springfield in 1949 by Joe Turasky Sr. and his uncle, Tony Yakst. The business has since been passed down to Joe Turasky, Jr. and then to his son, Brad. Turasky Meats sells a variety of meat products in addition to offering deer processing. At the 2022 Illinois State Fair, Turasky accepted the Grand Champion Snack Stick Award at the State Fair Meat Processors competition. The list of awards won by Turasky over the years continues to grow as the business focuses on hard work and creating quality products.
The Eickman family has been operating a meat processing plant since 1953 in Winnebago County. Merlyn Eickman purchased his first plant in Pecatonica, and his son Mike started working in the business in 1964. All operations were moved to Seward in 1967, and the company was renamed Eickman’s Processing Co. Several expansions came about over the years, increasing retail and warehouse space, as well as the processing floor and coolers and freezers. Over the years, Eickman’s has won numerous awards for their quality meat, accomplishments, and contributions to the meat industry. The business continued to be passed down to family, with Mike and Lori Eickman taking over in 1999, and Tom and Katie Eickman assuming ownership in 2020.
Similar family legacy stories can be found in the tiny village of Sainte Marie in Jasper County. Hartrich Meats was started in 1953 by Harold Hartrich and his wife Lucie to provide meat for their grocery store and to offer custom processing to local farmers. The Hartrichs were some of the original settlers in this village with French heritage. Harold and Lucie’s sons, Mark and Tony, took over the operation in 1984 and added a retail area, deer processing, catering, and grill sales. Mark and Tony’s sons – Craig, Brian, and Daniel, have joined the business to provide generations of experience and excellence to the community’s needs.
Trenton Processing, located east of St. Louis in Clinton County, was started in 1964 by Calvin and Loretta Schwend. The couple sold the business to three of their five children in 1991, but in 2022 the business was sold to Cody and Sheldyn Schneider of Beckemeyer. The Schneiders are keeping past traditions alive, with Trenton Processing continuing to offer a wide variety of specialty sausages along with many cured and smoked items. The business also offers custom processing, including deer processing.
Behrmann Meat and Processing in Albers is a family-owned business that was started in 1968. Dennis and Elaine Behrmann have built the business over the years, with several additions to the original building. Behrmann’s now has over 50 full-time employees and provides custom deer processing. The company’s mission is to produce, process, and sell quality products at the highest level possible.
On a sad note, a fire in late September of this year destroyed a popular deer processing business in West Frankfort. The owners of Web’s Meat Processing hope to rebuild at some point in the future.
Need to find a deer processor in your area? Here is a list of 20 more processing locations in Illinois:
- New Athens – Lehr’s Meat Market
- Saint Libory – Wenneman Meat Co.
- South Elgin – John’s Elgin Market
- Louisville – Blair’s Slaughtering and Processing
- Antioch – Old Mill Creek Country Store
- Carlinville – Illinois Deer Processing
- Mascoutah – Betty Ann Market
- Saint Joseph – River Bend Wild Game and Sausage Company
- Havana – Barner’s Butcher Block
- Chenoa – Chenoa Locker, Inc.
- Bradley – Matt’s Custom Deer Processing
- Mattoon – Morgan’s Meat Market
- Milan – Meatheads Meat Market
- Springfield – Magro’s Meat Processing
- Beecher City – J & J Meat Processing
- Highland – Grantfork Meats, Inc.
- Highland – Korte Meat Processing, Inc.
- DeSoto – Shirley Farms Meat Processing
- Anna – Triple C Meats
- Moweaqua – Moweaqua Packing Plant