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Mark Stammer, vice president of human resources at DemKota Ranch Beef, was the guest speaker at the Thursday, Nov. 20 Chamber Connections meeting at K.O. Lee Aberdeen Public Library. He fielded questions about the odor caused by the plant’s rendering facility. Aberdeen Insider photo by Elisa Sand.
Residents took their concerns about the smell associated with the two-year-old rendering operation at DemKota Ranch Beef to the latest Chamber Connections meeting.
Mark Stammer, vice president of human resources at DemKota, was the guest speaker Thursday, Nov. 20 at the library and faced questions about the lingering odor that’s left neighboring property owners and others upset.
Aberdeen and Brown County officials are also considering what they might be able to do to address the problem.
Following a brief overview of DemKota’s operation, which processes as many as 1,300 head of cattle per day and purchases cattle from 300 ranchers, many of whom are within a 250-mile radius of Aberdeen, Stammer opened the floor to queries.
It didn’t take long before he was asked what the beef processing plant was going to do about the rendering smell.
DemKota Ranch Beef has been operating for a decade just beyond the city limits on the southwest edge of town. The number of cattle processed each day varies, Stammer said. The beef is sold locally, nationally and internationally.
MORE: Brown County residents air grievances about DemKota rendering odor
In 2023, DemKota added a rendering operation. That followed approval of a conditional use permit by Brown County’s Planning and Zoning Board and the appropriate state permit.
“Since then, we have operated within the parameters of that permit, with some failures,” Stammer said.
Rendering processes what’s left of the animal carcass into items like beef tallow, blood meal and bone meal. Stammer said without the ability to render, he’s not sure there would be a meatpacking plant in town because it’s a critical part of the company’s business plan.
The equipment used is functioning as it should, he said, but he also understands the concerns and said he doesn’t like the smell, either.
“We have all the right equipment and all the right equipment is calibrated to perform at the level it needs to be,” Stammer said.
South wind draws smell into Aberdeen
If there’s a mechanical breakdown, Stammer said, employees need to fix the issue in real time. If they don’t follow procedures, like keeping doors closed, that can also result in noticeable odor, he said.
Stammer said if there’s a southerly wind and a mechanical breakdown, the smell will carry into town.
DemKota Ranch Beef products are sold locally, nationally and internationally. But some local residents take issue with the smell caused by the plant’s rendering operation. Aberdeen Magazine file photo.
But neighbors in attendance said the smell isn’t occasional, it’s constant — wind or no wind. One woman said the odor is so bad she won’t let her grandkids play outside.
On more than one occasion, Stammer repeated that DemKota is complying within the parameters of the conditional use permit issued by the county. But, he said, DemKota is aware of the concerns. New management has been hired for the rendering operation, he said, and the plant is looking at the possibility of automating some steps.
MORE: DemKota beef sues rendering plant consultant for $8.5M in cost overruns
DemKota has also worked with a consultant to see what can be done to further mitigate the smell. Those options are under review, Stammer said. One is setting up a second rendering operation so, if there’s an issue with the primary system, rendering can switch to the secondary system during repairs.
“That’ll cost a lot of money,” he said.
Stammer said he doubts the beef plant will get to a point where there will be zero detectable odor.
“At the end of the day, no matter what we do, I can’t promise it’ll ever go to zero,” Stammer said. “There’s going to be something. If the expectation is zero, that’s an unmanaged expectation.”
But, he said, it can be better than it is now.
“I think we can get better at some expense. And the powers that be will have to make that decision,” Stammer said.
Mayor has received more than 100 calls, messages
Schaunaman
Aberdeen Mayor Travis Schaunaman said he’s been contacted by roughly 100 people about the smell. Following the meeting, he said people have reached out to him with phone calls, texts, Facebook messages and have even asked about the odor when they see him in public.
Stammer admitted that’s a big number, but wondered if those messages represented repeat callers or 100 different people.
Schaunaman asked if there were other communities that have dealt with the smell of rendering and seen improvements.
Stammer was uncertain, but said he’s open to visiting other cities that have beef processing plants with rendering operations. He mentioned the JBS processing plant in Grand Island, Neb., as one example. That plant processes 6,000 head of cattle per day. A search for news stories revealed a history of complaints from Grand Island residents about the rendering smell.
Ekanger can see DemKota from his back door
Aberdeen City Councilman Talmage Ekanger couldn’t make it to Thursday’s talk, but is familiar with the smell neighboring residents experience. In a phone interview with The Aberdeen Insider, he said he’s among the first to notice when the odor is bad. He can see the rendering operation from his house.
Ekanger
“If it’s a south wind the smell will range from mildly annoying to sick to your stomach,” he said.
Ekanger said the No. 1 topic he heard from residents while he was campaigning for a spot on the council earlier this year was a desire to mitigate the smell. They’re not opposed to the beef processing plant, he said, they just want the DemKota to be a good neighbor.
Ekanger said there are days when there isn’t a smell, but there are also days that start odor-free only to have a foul smell hit a couple hours later.
MORE: DemKota relies on quality cattle, dedicated workers for success
“There’s no question where it’s coming from,” Ekanger said.
This smell wasn’t an issue before rendering started, he said, and it seems to be getting worse, not better.
DemKota Ranch Beef just southwest of Aberdeen processes as many as 1,300 head of cattle a day, but some local residents don’t like the odor emitted from the plant’s rendering facility. Aberdeen Magazine file photo.
“It really does surprise me how fast it goes from nothing to, ‘Oh my,'” Ekanger said, not ruling out the possibility of private legal action.
Ekanger echoed what neighbors conveyed to Stammer. They were told the rendering operation would be in a sealed building and it wouldn’t smell. Stammer doubted neighbors were promised no smell, but according to news reports at the time, that information came from Ken La Faive, director of sales at Haarslev Processing Technology.
La Faive said at the time the rendering system was a closed-loop system with which no product is exposed to the air. Raw materials go in, and tallow is separated from the solids, which are ground into a powder. As for the odor, La Faive said, it’s confined to the machine with no avenue to escape because of chemical air scrubbers.
The conditional use permit was approved provided DemKota also met all federal and state regulations concerning air quality and odor control. Residents have the option to file private nuisance complaints. At the time of the hearing, zoning board members said an odor resulting from rendering could give the county cause to pull the permit.
Brown County nuisance ordinance needs update
While the county has a nuisance ordinance, Brown County Commission Chairman Duane Sutton said commissioners have been told updates are needed as it leaves the county with little recourse. Sutton was also out of town for Thursday’s discussion, but spoke to The Aberdeen Insider by phone.
Sutton
He said he has fielded at least two dozen calls and twice as many text messages related to the smell of the rendering operation and that residents continue to report to the county when the smell is bad.
“It’s a tough situation,” Sutton said, “and it totally sucks.”
He said the county needs to do something.
Brown County and Aberdeen have jointly hired an attorney to review the situation and see what options there are, Sutton said. The state’s attorney is also looking into the situation, he said.
MORE: Equipment malfunction that caused DemKota Ranch Beef odor rectified
Sutton said he’s not sure what the next step is for the county, but said the issue will continue to be discussed and didn’t dismiss the possibility of a nuisance lawsuit.
“Prior to the rendering plant, we didn’t hear any complaints,” he said. “It’s pretty easy to pinpoint that rendering is the cause of the odor.”
Chamber Connections meetings are sponsored by the Aberdeen Area Chamber of Commerce and are at K.O. Lee Aberdeen Public Library at 8:45 each Thursday morning, excluding holidays and summer months.