Farmers and the Yukon government are investigating the feasibility of a permanent slaughterhouse and processing plant for red and white meat.

Without question, a permanent plant would be another stimulus for an already-expanding agricultural industry in the territory, said Mike Blumenschein, president of the Yukon Agricultural Association.

At a press conference earlier this week, Blumenschein and Energy, Mines and Resources Minister Brad Cathers unveiled a new stream of federal and Yukon government funding to support and promote local agriculture.

Cathers said with the additional money, the industry will now have access to $987,000 annually over the next four years to finance a variety of programs. An example is the continuing purchase of specialized equipment that is generally out of reach for a single farmer.

"Certainly, the Yukon government's objective in working with the agriculture industry is of course to increase the amount of food grown locally in the territory, and to basically assist the agricultural sector in improving profitability and the security of food supply," Cathers told reporters.

The minister said improving infrastructure for the agricultural industry is one way of assisting.Under the joint funding program, for instance, the agricultural association was granted $70,000 to buy a hi-tech, no-till drill, the latest in seeding technology.

Cathers said providing infrastructure funding to establish a pool of specialized equipment reduces costs and opens to the door to advanced methods that would otherwise be inaccessible for many farmers.

The former joint funding arrangement, which started in 2003, for instance, financed the purchase of special storage bins for fertilizer and grain - some 22 to date.

The bins are spread among 12 farms, but are used in a communal way so all farmers have the chance to order fertilizer in bulk and store in one of the bins.

A specialized manure spreader is stored out at the Andrew farm west of Whitehorse on the Alaska Highway. A hi-tech aerator is on order.

When the new no-till drill arrives later this month, it will be stored out at Blumenschein's farm on the Takhini River Road. Farmers can rent out the equipment much like they would from a co-op down prairie farm country. The profits stay with the association to cover maintenance costs.

At its recent annual general meeting, the agricultural association estimated it has amassed about $400,000 in equipment.

When the federal government kicked off its program to funnel agricultural funding to Yukon farmers in 2003, it was providing $321,000 annually.

For its part, the Yukon government was obligated to put up $214,000, largely made up of staff time and in-kind services.

Through the new national Growing Forward campaign announced by Cathers and Blumenschein, Ottawa is increasing it annual contribution to $592,000. The Yukon is raising its ante to $395,000 in cash by maintaining its in-kind service, along with an annual cash contribution of $185,000.

There are six categories of funding to support a variety of initiatives from education in food safety to learning new farming techniques.

Growing forward supports a compensation policy in case local farmers suffer crop damage from wild elk, for instance.

Investment in new infrastructure is still a priority.

Cathers said a consultant is currently pulling together all the available research into a meat processing plant for the Yukon, what it might do for the local industry, and what a such a facility might look like.

The Yukon government invested $136,000 into an abattoir at the Partridge Creek Farm south of Dawson City in the 1990s. It only ever really succeeded as a facility for poultry and eggs, but nothing to speak of in terms of red meat production.

Location, many say, was instrumental in its inability to fill the niche.

In 2006, the Yukon government purchased a mobile abattoir for $178,000. It has been under-utilized, the minister acknowledged.

Part of the reason, he said, is that restaurants and other retailers don't want to order by the hind quarter anymore.

Cathers said they want a box of steaks, cut and wrapped, not front shoulder.

"We certainly see the need and opportunity to work with the farmers to see what infrastructure would be wise to invest in," the minister said.

Getting more farmers producing chickens and beef, Cathers added, means getting more locally-grown food out to the public.

Blumenschein said the territory's agricultural industry has undergone significant growth in the last five years.

Statistics indicate 150 Yukon farms represent a total capital value of $66 million, and generate between $4 million and $5 million in annual sales.

A full-blown meat processing plant for red and white meat, said the farming president, would provide another significant boost.

In an interview following the press conference, Blumenschein explained the association's ultimate goal is to capture 10 per cent of the market. Currently, Yukon farmers have maybe one or two per cent, he said.

But nothing is impossible.

Blumenschein pointed out the Yukon Grain Farm has captured 50 per cent of the Yukon's potato market.

"There is a lot of people out there who, if they can buy it locally, even if it cost a bit more, will buy locally," he said.

Blumenschein said dynamics in the market place have shifted.

Very real is the growing number of consumers who want to buy locally and reduce the amount of fuel - reduce the carbon footprint - of getting products to market, he said.

Now, he said, you may have a farmer raising 200 chickens a year. Taking the chicken from the coup to the freezer requires a tremendous amount of work, he said.

Processing 100 chickens will take a farmer and five or 10 friends and volunteers a very full day, he said, adding you can only call on your friends so often.

Having a slaughter and processing facility would create many new opportunities, said Blumenschein.

Farmers may not jump to a thousand birds a year, but could easily climb to 400 or 500 with access to a year-round processing facility.

The association's alliance with Growers of Organic Food Yukon and GOOFY's push for boosting local food production has only fuelled the justification for a such a facility, he said.

"We all feel that is our next step, to bring agriculture another step forward in the Yukon."

Blumenschein said there are a number of options being explored, including incorporating the use of the existing mobile abattoir in the production of red meat at the plant, while allowing it to remain mobile when needed.

The association played around with numbers about four years ago and came up with a cost of somewhere around $2.5 million, he said.

Blumenschein said it's premature to even hazard a guess right now, not knowing what would be involved.

There's talk, for instance, of marrying the meat plant with a community storage and washing facility for vegetables.

The consultant's report is due by the end of the month, and if there's a case to be made for further research, there's $200,000 available to put together a business model, Blumenschein said.

The industry is looking at a facility that would operate on a part-time basis, perhaps a week out of every month, he added.

A proposal back in the 1990s for a permanent abattoir on the outskirts of Whitehorse drew considerable debate.

Among the issues of concern was the disposal of animal waste products, and what impact a facility would have on any nearby neighbourhoods.

Technology today, Blumenschein said, has come a long way with regards to waste disposal.

There's a couple of locations being looked at, but stay tuned, he said.