The Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Marketing Service awarded a $200,000 Project Grant to Southeast Alabama Meat Processing (SAMP) under the Meat and Poultry Inspection Readiness Grants – Supplemental Funding program (CFDA 10.180). SAMP, located in Newton, Alabama, is a custom-exempt slaughter and meat processing facility that currently processes 8-10 beef cattle and 3 hogs per week. With this funding, SAMP will install a new building addition with an improved carcass cooler and packaging equipment to obtain a Federal Grant of Inspection. This will allow SAMP to become the only USDA-inspected beef and pork processing facility within a five-hour drive, filling a critical void. The upgrades aim to increase SAMP's weekly capacity by 17 additional beef cattle and 10 more hogs. The award will also support job growth and expanded market access for over 300 additional local livestock farmers in Alabama, Florida, and Georgia. The period of performance for this Project Grant is September 30, 2021 through September 29, 2024.