The products in the display counters are the same ones Morgan uses when he competes at the state and nationwide levels. The following is a breakdown of the 11 awards won at the recent state convention:
Grand Champion
Cooked and smoked pork- Hams
Reserve Grand Champion
Dried beef, cured and smoked-Jerky
Specialty whole muscle item- Jalapeno bacon
Bacon
MN Grown Product - Mushroom/Swiss brats
Champion
Cooked summer sausage
Cooked poultry product- Turkey jerky
Reserve Champion
Cooked non-fermented summer sausage
Specialty summer sausage- Hawaiian
Braunschweiger
Ground and formed jerky
“Steve’s Meats in Ellendale and New Geneva Meats did really well in Rochester,” said Morgan. “There are some real good plants down here in Southern Minnesota. We have been fortunate and have won 27 awards in the last two years at both state and national. You don’t expect to win and it is tough to win in Minnesota. It really pushes you to continually make your products better.”
Morgan plans to expand his line of meat products available to his customers and believes in making his own seasoning.
“We have 25 different varieties of brats right now,” said Morgan. “I have 15 more to get ready. We also have 10 different flavors of beef jerky. I don’t use pre-mix seasoning for the bacon or hams, it’s all mixed from scratch. Each one is unique.”
“We keep striving to make our products better,” he continued. “It’s been a good ride. The town has really supported us.”
