| State | Custom Slaughter (9CFR 303.1) | Owners Per Animal (No limit per USDA) | On Farm Slaughter (Producer, owner, or both) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Yes. Requires a custom exempt Grant of Inspection. | No limit. Paperwork requirements are owner’s name, address, tag number, and animal description. | Owner may field dress. Producer may not field dress. Field dressed cattle must be 30 months or younger due to BSE. Processing plants may have the option of not accepting field dressed animals. |
| Alaska | Yes. | No limit. | Defer to USDA. |
| Arizona | Yes. Requires a license. | One owner only. | The producer may not field dress. The owner may slaughter on farm if licensed as an exempt mobile slaughterer. Otherwise, the slaughter must be done by the custom exempt facility. |
| Arkansas | Yes. | No limit. | Defer to USDA. |
| California | Yes. | No limit. | If the live animal is sold to the owner, it must be transported to the owner’s property to be slaughtered or to a California Department of Food and Agriculture licensed custom livestock slaughter facility or to a USDA inspected slaughter facility. |
| Colorado | Yes. Requires a license. | No limit. | Both producer and owner may slaughter and then transport carcass to a licensed facility for further processing. |
| Connecticut | Yes. | No limit. | Defer to USDA. |
| Delaware | Yes. | No limit. | Defer to USDA. |
| Florida | Yes. | No limit. | Defer to USDA. |
| Georgia | Yes. | No limit. | Owner may slaughter. Producer may not. |
| Hawaii | Yes. | No limit. | Defer to USDA. |
| Idaho | Yes. | No limit. | Defer to USDA. |
| Illinois | Yes. | No limit. | No field dressing. |
| Indiana | Yes. | No limit, but “typically not more than four.” | Owner may slaughter. Producer may not. |
| Iowa | Yes. | No limit. | Producer or owner may field dress. Custom facility has option to refuse to process field dressed animals. |
| Kansas | Yes. | No limit. | Owner may slaughter. Producer may not. |
| Kentucky | Yes. | No limit. | No slaughtering by owner or producer. |
| Louisiana | Yes. | No limit. | Producer or owner may field dress. |
| Maine | Yes. | No limit. | Producer or owner may field dress. |
| Maryland | Yes. | No limit. | Defer to USDA. |
| Massachusetts | Yes. Requires a state license. | No limit. | Defer to USDA. |
| Michigan | Yes. | No limit. | Defer to USDA. |
| Minnesota | Yes. | Guidelines (but not regulations on the books): Minimum order for beef is ¼. Minimum order for a hog is ½. | Producer may slaughter. Owner may not. Producer could also hire someone with a mobile slaughter unit that is licensed to slaughter on the farm. |
| Mississippi | Yes. | Up to four owners per animal. | Only owner can field dress. |
| Missouri | Yes. | No limit. | Producer or owner may field dress. |
| Montana | Yes. | No limit. Beef/cattle/horses need a change of ownership inspection when the animal is sold, and all owners must be named on the document transferring ownership. | Neither producer nor owner may slaughter. Slaughter must be done in a licensed facility. |
| Nebraska | Yes. | No limit. | Defer to USDA. |
| Nevada | Yes. | No limit. | Neither producer nor owner may field dress. |
| New Hampshire | Yes. | No limit. | Defer to USDA. |
| New Jersey | Yes. | No limit. | Neither producer nor owner may field dress. Slaughter must be done in the exempt facility. |
| New Mexico | Yes. | No limit. | Defer to USDA. |
| New York | Yes. | No limit. | Defer to USDA. |
| North Carolina | Yes. | No limit. | Producer or owner may slaughter. |
| North Dakota | Yes. | No limit. | Neither producer nor owner may slaughter. |
| Ohio | Yes. | Limited to four owners. | Producer or owner may field dress but must be done on owner’s property. |
| Oklahoma | No. | N/A | N/A |
| Oregon | Yes. | No limit. | Neither producer nor owner may field dress. |
| Pennsylvania | Yes. | No limit. | Defer to USDA. |
| Rhode Island | Yes. Requires a license. | Only one owner per animal according to department policy. This limitation is not in either statute or regulation. | Producer or owner may slaughter. |
| South Carolina | No. | N/A | N/A |
| South Dakota | Yes. | No limit. | Farm slaughter okay only if done by a representative of a licensed facility. |
| Tennessee | Yes. | No limit. | Producer or owner may field dress. |
| Texas | Yes. | No limit. Each owner has their own cut sheet and pays for their own processing. | Only owner may field dress. No field dressing of cattle under BSE rules. |
| Utah | Yes. | No limit. | Owner may field dress on their own property. A licensed mobile slaughterer may go to the owner’s land, field dress the animal, and transport it to a custom processing facility. |
| Vermont | Yes. | No limit. Owner must sign an owner’s certification for the animals. | Producer or owner may field dress. |
| Virginia | Yes. | No limit. | Owner may field dress. Producer may not field dress. |
| Washington | Yes. | No limit. | Producer may field dress. |
| West Virginia | Yes. | Limited to two owners. This is policy, not found in either statutes or regulations. | The owner may slaughter and deliver to the custom exempt facility. Producer may not slaughter unless producer has a license. |
| Wisconsin | Yes. | Limit of four owners if slaughter is done at a custom facility. If done on the farm through a mobile slaughtering unit, there may only be one owner. | Producer or owner may field dress but must be on owner’s premises. |
| Wyoming | Yes. | No limit, but must prove ownership by bill of sale. | Producer or owner may field dress. |