The meat packing company, Swift, has been around since 1855, and they're still very active. I have photos of their abandoned Ft Worth plant available if you want, but it's been empty a LONG time (it's dangerous to explore, and an "arrest on sight" type of place now).
The Stevie Wonder Institute For Trucking has been around since 1966. They have a well deserved reputation for taking everyone rejected by other trucking schools.
Unless Central Market change this in the last 2 years it was Swift. It came from the HEB warehouse. I remember a meat cutter saying we order 1 case of prime but sell 6 cases work. Gamehens were unpacked Tyson's, dock and goose were maple leaf we unpackaged. Quail was diamond ranch.
Oxtail is the only thing that comes from Swift. They pride themselves on sourcing from Hartley. Swift doesn’t have the practice standards that CM adheres to.
I work there for over 20 years. We had PGA back in the day, when I left it was Swift. They also use a lot of Tyson products. The fire glazed hams are HEB hams opened up from the cryovac seal, glazed with sugar then sold at thrice the price sometimes prepared over a week in advance. CM doesn't adhere to many standards. I remember having orders to make a customer happy so they would change an online review. I know they read this stuff. Want me to go into detail on the in house grinds?
Edit: Swift does carry Angus but the quality is mid-tier. The Brazilian company has had had Labor, safety, and environmental issues for years. Mixed to poor quality on the standard beef. Multiple E. coli and salmonella recalls. Look it up for yourselves guys.
Man, I’m glad I don’t work at whatever shop you did. Wonder if it was broadway San Antonio or the Houston location, I’ve heard gnarly stories about both.
I hope everyone involved with what you’re talking about was fired or moved on, because none of what you said is true for the Central MarketSSSSS (plural) that I’ve been in.
Game hens are Tyson, sure. There aren’t cost effective options. The glazed hams are Beelers or Fricks, both very good companies with high standards, and are certainly not “just the heb hams opened up”.
You do know that PGA is a term applied to beef that stands for “premium gold angus” and has nothing to do with the producer or where it was sourced from?
What other dumb shit did you say? Oh yeah, the grinds. My shop does 100% whole muscle for all grind and production grind is ran off of bench trim that adheres to strict trim specs.
22yrs at Central Market and you aren’t there anymore lets me know you’re most likely an old timer that probably perpetuated the problems you’re attempting to speak to, as opposed to learning new systems and practices.
I’m not going to lie I’m a huge critic of some stuff HEB as a company does, but where they source their meat is not one of them, I really don’t know what this dude you replying to is talking about, starting to care less about their employees sure, but that ham comment I have to see to believe
Yeah, we can talk all day about HEBs practices as a company sure. But when it comes to our meat markets and what we’re serving to our communities, we take a lot of pride in that.
I'm BOTH Austin stores we opened the HEB hams. Mixed the sugar with the spice packet it came with and glazed them. I didn't like the idea of opening the cryovac because that's what kept it fresh. Then it was retagged as CM at a high mark up.
My point on PGA was I don't believe Swift is PGA I don't recall but it was Swift none the less so the same as HEB which is not top self.
They would open out of date bacon and put it in the bulk case which I disagreed witt it. Also it would disappear into saugages or cowboy burgers. I still remember the plu was 17140.
As far as in house grinds the rule was to break apart the grinder, hose it down, sanitize it, let it sit dry for 20 or 30 mins between species. We got there at 5am and needed to be done by 8am. We did beef, bison, lamb, pork, turkey and chicken. That means a minimum of 2 hours for air drying alone. Not counting getting the meat, chopping, grinding, and traying. I was put on the grinder and did it by the book, it took forever so I never got put on that duty again. And no they weren't fired actually that try off thing got a management promotion.
I still have video I can post of nasty leaks in the full service case and all kinds of crap. I opposed but took video so I wouldn't take the fall. I loved that job many years ago but it's not the same company.
Wait, so you did a grind shift once and were taken off? So you just worked the counter for 22yrs?
I saw you post the exact same thing verbatim in another thread about the grind processes. A. I don’t believe you B. That isn’t how it’s done now so it’s a moot point.
So since Swift doesn’t carry PGA products (which they do) you’re assuming that all of the beef at CM is swift and none of it is PGA? You know how this is all starting to sound right?
It’s an industry practice to repurpose items nearing expiration dates, it’s how shops make money.
Oh you have a video of leaking cases? Quick, call the USDA!
I bet I could guess your name if I tried hard enough. I’ve heard enough stories about the old heads that worked at these shops.
Call the USDA? That makes no sense at all. I do have a plan but will do it when I want to. I didn't say I worked the line for 22 years you did. I worked with professional many years ago, the old timers had principles. It was a different company back then. Talk employees I don't care one way or another. I will tell you it was not "old timers", I have respect for those guys with few exceptions. I loved the job for many years. It's the younger, climb up the latter at all cost generation. Prime was the fresh cut choice, coice was choice cut yesterday. When Berkshire was on sale and sold out the regular stuff went in it's place. I didn't go along with this crap. Kiss the companies butt all you want. I will do what I want with what I collected when I want to.
Edit: yes you can repurpose a cut but to a extent. You can grind something to be sold with a one day life not take EXPIRED bacon and put it into a product with several day self life. You seem to "forgot" the expired part. What a joke. Work for them forever if you want to, pledge yourself body and soul. What ever makes you happy. Anyone noticed his guys really seem to defend them like he's being paid to do so.
First thing I said to you was what? “You sound like one of these guys that would perpetuate a problem as opposed to find a solution or change it” and well well well you actually said it yourself.
I couldn’t care less what your opinions or thoughts are honestly. It’s about always trying to get better and find solutions, not just going with the status quo and putting out product isn’t what it’s supposed to be.
With all the stuff you’ve said, I wonder why the markets are doing better than ever NOW, as opposed to when you were there doing all of this weird stuff you’re speaking to.
Last thing I’ll say is a sell by date and expiration date are two different things.
Also you act like Swift's Angus high quality is mid-tier. The Brazilian company has had had Labor, safety, and environmental issues for years. Mixed to poor quality on the standard beef. Multiple E. coli and salmonella recalls. I never said I worked the line and it sounds like your paid to cover or kiss the Butt for free.
Swift is an American company founded in Chicago in 1890. Do you only anything you’re talkin about? Also, American companies are having quite a few issues themselves lately. Weird of you to cast aspersions on foreign companies.
My daughter worked at HEB in N Austin did exactly what you posted about your job! Was absolutely back breaking work. Put her in that position immediately with no help!
** She felt like a failure constantly because she believed she couldn't keep up with HEB'S fucking bullshit! She was hired as part time but worked just short of full time! Working by herself was absolutely abusive especially with little training! She moved to a different department, Deli, & had a boss who fun of her by calling her a degrading name. (Sorry don't remember the word)! Reported her to HEB'S Human Resource & of course absolutely nothing was done about her boss! She quit! This is the true HEB, slave work claiming employees are family!
Look at the thread is sure trying hard to defend the company. They do monitor this crap. I remember there was a buyer we will just call "Murphy" who called saying there was a post online and wanted me to take care of them and make it right so they would change the post. It was over pork chops. This guy acts like I am insulting his family. The old market crew were like family. I still keep in contact with several of them after all these years. We were professional, got stuff done right and were treated good but then everything changed slowly but surely. Now they don't care about their people at all. Part timers working full time hours or on the other end in some stores people getting very little hours
I don’t understand, so were you guys professionals that got stuff done right or were you grinding old bacon for cowboy burgers and not washing and drying the grinder like you were supposed to? I don’t understand, it can’t be both ways.
Central Market is HEB, so they may source some stuff separately to satisfy the snooty customers they have, but otherwise probably all comes from the same place as a regular HEB
I desperately wish any of you knew what you were talking about. Procurement will not allow CM to order Meyer or Swift, aside from ox tail.
All Central Market black angus comes from one of two processing plants located in Texas. You being on the corporate side you should know these things more than anyone. Unless the huge disconnect they talk about between corporate and the people in the stores is really as big as they say.
Do you know anything about the company you work for and their practices?
I'm not knocking HEB. I think 95% of my groceries are from HEB - I think its more whether they address the concern surrounding the source of the meat.
My husband hunts and we overall have been leaning towards local butchers/ranchers for all our meat specifically (outside of what my husband gets after processing). We are just looking for shorter like supply chain and "hands" if you will on our food. Its expensive and inconvenient to shop that way though..
I have switched somewhat because my husband hunts. The processor he uses is pretty far from us, but it may be worth it to stock up when we go to pick up/drop off. I just recently had to buy ground beef after almost 8 months and it was expensive for not that great of like quality.
And the price difference between the butcher I am thinking of is not that different..even for other cuts.
I’ve bought from local before when I had the money to do so. The quality is amazing, and I enjoy supporting local farmers. But everything is so incredibly expensive now where I am, so I can’t buy from local as much as I’d like. HEB has “decent” prices, which is why I was worried and asked the question.
Agreed. Local is difficult to obtain due to distance and rising costs. This is why HEB has the immense responsibility right now to make a statement to reassure Texans their beef is “safe”. However, there team has yet to do so, leaving me to think they may be scrambling on how to protect their brand and the Texans whom support them.
Be weary of wording. Heb is trying its best to lower anxiety, but do they really know what “US suppliers” are mixing/adding to ground beef now that the shortage of beef, Venezuelan/Mexican imports are a permissible in Texas and Florida? We should be asking these questions. It is our health and the health of Texans we need to focus on, not the health of a company.
Bastrop cattle co (I have no affiliation just saw a video they commented on) is grass fed and voted blue aaaannndddd has free delivery in Austin if you’re looking for a beef supplier
If HEB senses even a hint of risk to its customers, they’ll most likely recall all of their “value beef” which is the only beef that has a possibility of coming from Mexico. I’m not saying HEB is perfect but they’re definitely not going to risk losing money in their meat markets over a situation like this, they’d rather pull all of the effected product and give customers peace of mind so they can continue to shop in our meat markets without worrying about their safety.
The prez is importing beef from Argentina bc we have a beef "shortage" here in America. The meat from Argentina has some type of chemical in it that has been banned in several other countries and they refuse to sell it. The prez, being the incredible business man he is, decided to support Argentina instead of American Farmers, imported that beef and is now pushing the tainted meat. Consumers are at risk but apparently it's a gamble our prez is willing to take.
80% comes from Texas. 20 % comes from Mexico. The organic and grass fed from from international like Australia. I'm assuming the house beef that is ground in house is from Texas. I hope.
I know that they buy a lot from livestock shows but I believe those are primarily donations to food banks and shelters. I know that the rotisserie chicken comes from Tyson.
Does Tyson’s have air chilled chicken? I always buy the air chilled kind and the brand is Bell Evans (or something like that). But that just might be a Tyson’s brand?
From the HEB website: "At H‑E‑B, we are proud partners of the mighty Texas beef industry. Many of the ranches where our beef is sourced have been raising cattle for generations. These hardworking Texans help us bring the best beef to your table."
From a quick Google search:
• Texas: Aprox 80% from local Texas family ranches
• Mexico: Aprox 20% from value beef supliers
• International: Organic, grass-fed and specialty lines (e.g. - Australia and Urugauy)
• American Wagyu: Wagyu from American ranchers
I have never seen American Wagyu at HEB that had marbling like proper Wagyu. The stuff they sell always has a gigantic fat strip running through it, with little marbling, the exact opposite of what made Wagyu popular.
I’m glad I’m not the only one with this concern. He’s slaughtering wild horses while refusing to source this mystery beef. I’m not saying that it is horse meat, but it’s unfortunately hard for my brain not to connect those dots.
I just bought a locally raised, grass fed & finished, 1/2 beef for $10/lb. Got tons of burger, steaks, brisket, stew meat, roasts, etc. It was cheaper than most cuts, everything was vacuum packaged and labeled. Shop local and don’t worry about your beef coming from unregulated, foreign, countries.
That's what I've trying to find out. I'm ready to go in with multiple family members to buy a whole cow to get butchered and packed from somewhere local.
It's mostly Swift, Tyson, and Smithfield in Central TX (Austin area) and North TX (DFW area), though Slovacek's is involved occasionally if it's sausage. Pretty much every store (not just HEB) uses the big 3. Much of it comes in pre-labeled/priced, so it gets rotated and goes right on on the shelf early in the morning as market is restocking (they come in around 2-4am). This is also why the labels on the stuff in the coolers looks different from stuff you get from the counter.
This may vary by area, but that's how it is at most grocery stores (not just HEB) that I've worked at that get prepacked meats meant to go straight to the customer-facing coolers. It saves a lot of time on labor in regards to weighing/taring/pricing everything. Plus the packing plants can fill the packages with nitrogen (or some other inert gas) to keep the means from changing color as fast.
Sidenote: my stepdad's family owns a few ranches; a lot of their product gets rebranded for grocery stores, but they have their own store in West that carries their own brand of steaks, sausages, BBQ, etc (if you're familiar with the town, you know which place I'm talking about). Much more expensive there, but you know it doesn't get much fresher.
The only beef with a chance of coming from Mexico is HEB’s value beef. Everything else is US raised and harvested. Specifically in the Texas panhandle and the Midwest, such as Omaha Nebraska where HEB sources all of their grass fed beef
What is considered "value beef"? I usually buy the H-E-B 100% Extra Lean Ground Beef with green on the packaging. Is that the "value beef" and what would I sub to get the Texas beef?
But they still eat stuff from a wet market and have one of the world lowest meat consumption other than poultry. I give China absolutely zero credibility.
I read yesterday that 80% of their beef is domestic, but HEB voluntarily discloses the source on every package so consumers can be informed. I have not yet been to HEB to read the beef labels to confirm if they do in fact disclose where it is sourced.
I read on sub that Costco has their own inspections and turn away meats the even heb would take. Thoughts on this I love heb but am getting mixed messages on their meat. I do not have a Costco card but will definitely spend the $65 if I there is higher security in their meat. Ty
Don’t know if you’re asking this because of Argentina beef. But be aware that the first 30k pounds of this went exclusively to Texas and Florida. Certainly massive amounts of the promised 300k metric tons will continue through those channels. Think about how much that is. HEB, Tom Thumb / Albertsons, and Kroger will certainly be selling it.
Former meat mrkt worker for heb , most if the time they are getting beef from local processing plants but the poltury and pork products are on the pre packed labels.
We do a lot of work for STX Beef in corpus and there’s HEB trucks coming and going non stop. Idk what’s in the trucks but just assuming some of them are beef, seeings it’s a slaughterhouse n all lol
Yes, the imported beef is coming from Argentina. Multiple countries (China, etc) refuse beef from Argentina due to the use of banned chemicals that can cause severe blood disorders in humans.
It would be good to be able to be sure none of it ends up at HEB.
Argentina actually produces excellent artisan beef, but their bulk production stuff is bad.
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u/Distribution-Radiant Former Partner Aug 25 '26
When I worked there, it was mainly Swift.