A Wayland-based business that connects consumers to butchers and farmers across Iowa has set out to become the “Etsy” of meats.

ChopLocal.com Founder and CEO Jared Achen says their mission is to give customers access to the best meats from top producers throughout the state while shopping in just one location. He says he started ChopLocal late last spring when the pandemic created supply issues for grocery stores, caused restaurants to close, and the safety of meats from packing plants came into question.

Director of Marketing and Vendor Relations Katie Olthoff says one of their biggest early challenges was building trust between customers and vendors because people are more accustomed to buying meat products from a face-to-face establishment. She says they try to build that trust by inviting consumers to “Meet Your Meats,” “We want people to know where their food is coming from, where their meat is coming from and by going to ChopLocal, you find out more information about the vendors and know exactly where you meat is coming from, how the meat was raised, who cut it.”

Achen says they have several pork and beef vendors and recently added a vendor in Story City that is raising shrimp. He says when you place an order, you have the option of picking up your meat at the vendor or having it shipped to you.

You can hear more from Achen and Olthoff during our Special Edition Ag Magazine at 1 and 6 p.m. today on KCII