Off the Map: Edgewood Locker draws buyers from all over

EDGEWOOD - Brothers Terry and Jim Kerns took over the Edgewood Locker from their parents, who started the beef, pork and venison processor in 1966.

'We both grew up in the business and started full time right out of high school,” Terry Kerns said. 'Even today, I still enjoy working with customers and creating a product they will drive a long way to get.”

The business, on Highway 3 in Edgewood, has grown over the years. It started with two employees in a small facility and steadily expanded.

'People like to know where their meat is coming from, and that is one of the big reasons why we are busy,” he said.

Terry Kerns handles the business elements of the company, while Jim Kerns oversees production.

'We provide custom- slaughter of hogs and beef,” Terry Kerns said. 'And a big part of what we do is venison processing.”

The company also sells retail and wholesale products - a division the brothers launched.

In addition, Edgewood Locker offers catering for weddings and other events, which was a deciding factor in the brothers' decision to add an event center.

'The building was in bankruptcy in town, and we really needed a facility for events here in Edgewood,” Kerns said. 'We figured if anyone could make it work, we could with our catering background. And it's been fun to do something the town appreciates and enjoys.”

He attributed much of the company's success to diversifying its offerings - expanding to retail and wholesale products - as we well as aggressively keeping up with technology.

'We are fortunate to have had such growth as the number of meat lockers around the state is just a fraction of what it used to be,” Kerns said. 'There used to be one in every small town, and hogs and beef would come from within a couple of miles. Now we have customers that will drive two or three hours or more with no hesitation.”

Edgewood Locker processes about 30 cattle and 60 hogs per week, he said. 'Many people have heard of us here at Edgewood Locker, but they don't realize how much work 46 people can get done in a day.”

Venison processing is a big element of the business. Last year, the company processed 3,200 whole deer and 130,000 pounds of venison that hunters had deboned themselves. Kerns said deer season - from November to January - keeps them very busy.

'It can be hard to take advantage of the Christmas retail season because we are so busy with deer,” he said. 'Our volume during deer season, in fact, has allowed us to buy processing equipment that has been beneficial for our whole operation.”

Kerns said the company's bratwurst - all 29 flavors - are a big draw for retail customers. The beef snack sticks are another popular item. 'In the week before Christmas we produced 46,000 snack sticks,” he said.