Meat+Poultry - June 2021 - 87

I
t's a small, family-owned and operated
meat processing business now in its fourth
generation, and with the onset of COVID-19
over the past year, it's a business that many
Central Pennsylvanians rediscovered.
Holland Brothers Meats, located in
Duncansville, Pa., not far from Altoona,
started out when William Holland, the greatgrandfather
of the present owners, sold
strawberries at local markets but had a crop
ruined by bad weather.
He had 12 kids to raise and knew a lot of
the local farmers. To maintain an income, he
and his son, Terry Holland, began processing
livestock for farmers in the area. In 1964, they
peddled meats from a panel truck and later
operated a small stand at a farmer's market to
sell retail meats with only a small display case
and a freezer. By 1968, they decided to buy
some land and build a small processing shop.
William's son Lou joined the business
in 1967. Grandsons Steve Holland and Rick
Holland had returned from their military
service in Vietnam in 1969 and decided to
come to work for them, eventually buying
out Terry's share in 1972, about the time meat
inspection oversight shifted to the Animal and
Plant Health Service (APHIS).
It was a single-story building erected on a
hillside. The processing, cooling and freezing
area was later moved to an additional lower
floor where the retail had once been - and was
then moved to the upper level.
Mike Holland, now 38, and his cousin Brock
Holland, 43, purchased the business from their
fathers. They both say they learned the trade
on the job.
" I know that they [their fathers] always
challenged us to do better, " Mike said.
" When we went to trade shows run by the
Pennsylvania Association of Meat Processors
(PAMP) and the American Association of Meat
Processors (AAMP) they always found time to
network with other small processors. These
folks were pouring out information that always
made us better. Dad used to say I had to listen
because 'your ears aren't working when your
mouth is talking.' "
LEARNING ON THE JOB
Mike does the cutting for retail and works on
the kill floor while Brock, who also works the
slaughter floor, is in charge of the growing
catering end of the business. What they learned
from other processors at seminars and trade
shows they began implementing to improve
and expand their lineup of smoked and cured
value-added products.
" One guy that I always listened to was Gary
Bardine, from Bardine's Country Smokehouse
in nearby Crabtree, Pennsylvania, " Mike
explained. " He was the guy to beat in cured
meats competition and I think he knew I was
always anxious to learn. I suspect that he saw
in me himself from earlier years and he was
honestly trying to help me.
" We competed at the PAMP shows but
always seemed to finish second behind Gary,
who's now in the AAMP Cured Meats Hall
of Fame. Then one year, we finished second
again to Gary in the ham competition. The
next announcement was for the bacon
championship. They announced us as the
producer of the Grand Championship bacon...
Gary was second. I knew we had arrived. "
Since then, Holland Brothers Meats has
gone on to win countless awards in cured
meats competition, including national
championships in bacon, hams, kiolbassa and
hot dogs. They continue to return the favors of
knowledge given to them years earlier. Mike
serves as 2nd vice president of PAMP and as a
regional director for AAMP.
CATERING SUCCESS
Their catering business took off when, during
the struggling days, another processor told
them they needed to roast some pigs. Their
reputation for pig roasts and smoked hams
grew tremendously ever since. The catering
menu on their website, hollandbros.net, is a
veritable textbook of ideas for newbies and old
hands alike.
Under Brock's tutelage, the catering
division has zoomed to represent 20% of the
company's sales. Even during the COVID-19
pandemic, when many larger events were
cancelled or postponed, Holland Brothers
Meats put emphasis on their pick-up catering
program, including their renowned roasted
pigs. Indeed, they offer such staples as picnic
lunches, roasted turkeys and hams. About
10 years ago, the processing company began
featuring two versions of their Commercial
Breakfasts for area companies to entertain or
reward employees. Another specialty is their
" Dad used to
say I had to
listen because
'your ears aren't
working when
your mouth
is talking.' "
- MIKE HOLLAND
From left: After years of
learning on the job, Brock
Holland and his cousin
Mike Holland purchased
Holland Brothers Meats
from their fathers.
www.meatpoultry.com | 06.21 | MEAT+POULTRY
87
Photos: Holland Brothers Meats
http://www.hollandbros.net http://www.meatpoultry.com
Meat+Poultry - June 2021

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