DAYTON–Hand in glove with growing small grains around here is livestock production, and new owners of the local meat-processing business–formerly Joe Nyce's Dayton Cut and Wrap–are striving to meet the need of local beef and pork producers and their customers who prefer locally raised meat.

To meet the need for a butcher in the Columbia County area, Sierra Smith, her mother and cattle rancher Michelle Shoun, and sister Cheyanne Shoun have teamed up to go into business as Table Rock Meat Co.

The business is located at the same, long-time location at 406 E. Main Street and had a "soft opening" as of April 6, offering retail meat sales that was available prior to the slaughter and butcher operation kicking off a couple weeks later. Hours the shop is open is 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Getting the business started and up to speed required a lot of work on the plant and also involved local investors who put their money where their mouths were and ponied up the funds to help launch the venture.

Those investors included local ranchers and individuals who were without the local services to process beef and swine, and who will have not only that service available to them, but also to the community.

"My mom is a cattle rancher who is very particular about the flavor of the beef she eats," Sierra Smith said, adding that her mother was frustrated at the lack of a local processor.

Since the business opened, the response has been gratifying. "It's been overwhelmingly positive," Smith said. "People have been so kind and thoughtful and supportive. People have messaged, called and texted to say the meat was phenomenal."

It had been a couple years since the plant had been in production, Smith said. "We decided to step up and took it on from Joe Nyce. He decided to try it one more time and see if we were the ones that stick."

Smith, her mom, Michelle, and sister Cheyanne are all involved in the day-to-day operations. The butcher is Cristobal Garcia, who was trained by Nyce. "Joe comes in here pretty often," Smith said. "He's in and out a lot so he can make sure everything is going well. He's been very helpful all the way around."

Table Rock's goal is to keep things original, Smith said, like Nyce's operation that the community was accustomed to many years ago. "We're using Joe's recipes, Joe's techniques and practices," she said. "He's a big influence."

In the past few years, deferred maintenance took its toll on the building and equipment. Since closing the deal at the end of 2020, they have been working to ready the plant for business. "The improvements were mostly superficial," Smith said. "It got a full deep clean to every corner and crack, and we replaced the top materials, making everything water tight and food safe, even down to scrubbing the meat rails the meat rolls on."

The job of getting the refrigeration and freezing equipment in shape was turned over to Smith's dad Dean. The concrete floors were meticulously cleaned then received an epoxy coating that is water tight and cleans easily. "We run a tight ship on cleanliness," Smith said.

The operation has passed its public health and health-safety inspections and holds a Washington State Department of Agriculture permit. This allows them to retail USDA-inspected product.

"Animals that Table Rock kills will be custom cut and wrapped," Smith said. Livestock killed elsewhere must be taken to a USDA-certified facility, she said.

Catering to Michelle Shoun's high standard of quality, Table Rock will center its business on four or five breeds: Cross, Angus, Lowline, American Wagyu and Wagyu, Smith said.

In addition, meat will be processed on a strict timeline, Smith said. "Beef is supposed to hang 10 to 14 days, pork for five to seven days," she said. "Then we get them done. We do one animal per day because we took so much time to raise our beef, it's important to us that you get the animal you came in with."

Being a part of the community is a value held in high regard by Smith, her mother Michelle and sister Cheyanne. "We care about our community," Smith said. "We want to process meat by local ranchers, for local ranchers, and for the community."

-Submitted photo

Sierra Smith, left, mother Michelle Shoun and Cheyanne Shoun, sister and daughter respectively, are involved in the day-to-day operations of Table Rock Meat Co., which took over the facility last winter and was the subject of an extensive refurbishing project prior to opening in early April.

Smith is a 2016 Walla Walla High School graduate, where she was valedictorian, and she attended Pepperdine University in southern California, graduating in 2020 with a degree in biology. She is applying her university training with all aspects of the business.

Michelle (Barton) Shoun, born and raised in Dayton, has been a farmer and rancher all her life, and has devoted the past five to ten years to developing her bloodlines with a Wagyu bull and mostly Angus, producing the American Wagyu. Her approach is finding what's good from the consumer's perspective.