Mizzou’s meat market will not only have a new look, but also a new name when it opens along with the rest of the Michael L. Parson Meat Science Education and Training Laboratory on the University of Missouri campus this summer.
Earlier today at Gov. Mike Kehoe’s Beef Month Proclamation at the America’s Heartland Packing facility, a gift from The Rosen Family Foundation to the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources (CAFNR) was announced, leading to the renaming of the student-run storefront as the “American Foods Group Meat Market at Mizzou.”
The Rosen Family Foundation is a privately funded philanthropic organization that seeks to promote and enhance the quality of life in the communities it serves.
One such community is Warren County, Missouri, where the American Foods Group (AFG) beef processing facility, America’s Heartland Packing, opened last year. This facility employs more than 1,300 people and has expanded in-state processing options for cattle producers.
“This is a perfect example of public/private partnership that will benefit our state through shared priorities in applied research, industry‑driven innovation and workforce development,” said Bryon Wiegand, director of the Parson Meat Science Education and Training Lab and the Division of Animal Sciences in CAFNR. “I am grateful to The Rosen Family Foundation for recognizing the importance of our meat market space for impactful student education and experience in meat processing; in turn, the space will educate future leaders for companies such as AFG that have come into our state and proven they truly are the food processing business for Missouri.”
Mizzou’s meat market supports teaching, extension and research activities of the food science and animal sciences programs in CAFNR. The space is a storefront for the community to purchase meat products produced in the Michael L. Parson Meat Science Education and Training Laboratory facility and will be operated by students in CAFNR, combining traditional learning with hands-on, entrepreneurial experience.
“American Foods Group appreciates the generosity of The Rosen Family Foundation and its support for the University of Missouri’s new meat laboratory and its continued commitment to charitable, educational and scientific purposes,” said David Jagodzinske, president and COO of American Foods Group.
The Rosen family has been involved in agribusiness for 80 years, operating various business units throughout the Midwest, including in Clay and Warren County, Missouri. Beef processing is a significant component of this enterprise, employing more than 4,500 people. Recently, they expanded their operations to include America’s Heartland Packing.
“We are so proud to have American Foods Group in Missouri,” said Missouri Director of Agriculture Chris Chinn. “The Rosen family truly cares about each of the communities where they have a presence. Their investment in the Michael L. Parson Meat Science Education and Training Laboratory is further proof of the family’s commitment to our state and to the future of the agriculture industry.”
Set to open in July, the Parson Meat Science Education and Training Laboratory, located just south of the Trowbridge Livestock Center on the Mizzou campus, will promote innovation in meat processing through research, provide training to the state’s workforce on the latest technology and best practices, and inform communities across the state on food sourcing.
The building is named in honor of former Gov. Mike Parson, a champion of agriculture during his time in office and a third-generation cattleman. In 2023 and 2024, Parson signed budget bills that included a combined $35 million for the facility now bearing his name.
“The Parson Meat Science Education and Training Lab and the American Foods Group Meat Market at Mizzou provide a new vision for meat processing to support our land-grant mission in teaching, research and extension activities – ultimately boosting the economic value of raising livestock for producers across Missouri,” said Christopher Daubert, CAFNR vice chancellor and dean. “This will truly be a state-of-the art, hands-on space for student learning, as well as a showcase for meat science. Thank you to AFG for joining us in this vision.”
The new space is the state’s only working and teaching laboratory devoted entirely to meat processing and will enhance capacity for research and outreach with expanded lab space, classrooms and faculty offices, in addition to the American Foods Group Meat Market at Mizzou.