n THE CARILLON STEINBACH, MAN. C6
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2026
n www.thecarillon.com
Agriculture Now
FLASHBACK
October 7, 2021
After more than a century Ungers are still feeding animals and people WES KEATING CARILLON ARCHIVES When this photo was taken in 2021, three generations of the Unger family were kept busy at Unger Meats and Unger Feeds, located on the family homestead, south of Mitchell. Taking time out from their duties to pose for a family picture are: Erna and Ben G. Unger (seated) and standing, left to right: Ty Unger, Aaron Unger, Wayne Unger, Trent Mehling, Kallyn Mehling, Kami Unger, Bev Unger and Ray Unger. (Ben Unger passed away in April of 2023.)
by WES KEATING T he Unger family knows how to feed animals, and the Un- ger family knows how to feed people. They have been doing just that for five generations and the tran- sition from Unger Farms to Unger Meats and Unger Feeds guarantees they will be doing that for another generation or two. The family homestead, south of Mitchell, became home for the Un- ger family in 1903, and since then, the family farm expanded with each generation and today is the location of a thriving agri-business, involv- ing meat processing, retail meat and meals sales, feed production and a well-stocked agricultural supply store. For more than a century, the Unger farm was very much a typical mixed family farm, growing crops, making feed, raising livestock, butchering a few hogs for sausages, and getting a bit larger with each succeeding gen- eration. The family decided to take the operation in a completely differ- ent direction 10 years ago. Ray Unger says before the transi- tion was complete in 2012, the farm had been a 400-farrow-to-finish hog operation, which was fairly big back in the day. The Ungers also raised beef with a 300-head cow/calf oper- ation and ran a small meat shop on the yard, and did some custom meat cutting, as well. “When we got out of livestock com- pletely, we emptied the hog barn and sold the cattle.” In 2021, the Unger Meats and Unger Feeds ownership group includes Ray, Wayne, Kami and Bev Unger. Each has a specif- ic role in the daily operation of the multi-faceted agri-business, but at times, jobs tend to overlap. Wayne is the meat cutter of the family, running the sausage and meat department. Bev Unger is customer service, Kami is administrative director and human resources manager, and Ray is feed production manager. Along with members of the next generation of the Unger family, they
WES KEATING CARILLON ARCHIVES Wayne Unger, the family meat-cutter, manages processing and custom cutting for Unger Meats.
WES KEATING CARILLON ARCHIVES Ray Unger moves a pallet of feed across the yard at Unger Feeds.
WES KEATING CARILLON ARCHIVES Administrative director Kami Unger spends most of her time working in the office at the store and processing facility.
bacon and sausage, are also pro- duced by the Ungers. Kami Unger says almost everything in the store is processed there, except chicken and pizza. “We’re known for our farmer sau- sage and bacon. The farmer sausage is made from a recipe handed down to Ray from his dad, who got it from his dad.” While the location of Unger Meats and Unger Feeds is miles away from the Village of Mitchell and the City of Steinbach, the out-of-way loca- tion does not deter a steady stream of customers from dropping in on the Ungers. Frequent customers include the municipality’s grader operators, who roll onto the yard regularly to pick up snacks for their coffee break. This agricultural enterprise is in- deed the Ungers’ “Field of Dreams.” “If you build it, they will come.”
livestock, including beef, dairy, hogs, sheep, horses, chickens and rab- bits, as well as dog and cat food. “We look after customers the best way for them, supplying feed in 20 kg bags or in mini-bulk quantities for smaller operators and hobby farms.” Ungers feed their animals and later they will have them slaughtered and bring in the carcasses for processing by Unger Meats, Ray says. “In some cases, we become meat customers for our feed customers, buying carcasses from producers we supply with feed.” Other animals for custom cutting and processing at Unger Meats come from any one of three Manitoba kill- ing plants. Unger Meats processes a wide se- lection of beef and pork cuts, and produces ready-to-eat meals like la- sagna and fettucine. A wide range of beef and pork products, including sandwich meats, snack sticks, and
something needed to change, and processing meat had been taught from generations back, Ray said. Wayne Unger, the family’s meat cut- ter, was on hand and ready to take on an expanded role in that part of the new enterprise. “We were familiar with making feed as well and were quite comfortable to move to feeding people and feeding other people’s animals, instead of raising livestock.” Kami says she likes being self-em- ployed and wants to stay working on the homestead that has been in the family since 1903. It is great to be do- ing something on this yard, she adds. “We know how to feed people and we know how to feed animals.” The buildings on the yard have been repurposed for the feed com- pany and storage, and the empty hog barn was renovated to become the agriculture supply store, meat shop and meat processing facility, Ray ex- plains. The store sells quality feed for
operate what is described on their website as “a unique Manitoba coun- try store, located on the homestead where five generations of Ungers have produced the food their families and community were raised on.” It was Ray’s brother Ron, who was most instrumental in a mapping out a new direction for the Unger en- terprise, which moved from feeding livestock and producing meat, pro- cessed by others, to feeding livestock for others and processing the meat they produce on a custom basis or for sale in the Unger Meats store, south of Mitchell. Kami Unger says her husband, who died suddenly of a heart attack in 2019, was the visionary. Ron’s plan for the future of the family enterprise made the transition to Unger Meats and Unger Feeds seem like a very sensible move at the time, according to Ron’s older brother Ray. Market conditions had dictated
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