Lambton County cattle farmer suspends orders after meat theft

A Lambton County cattle rancher had to suspend orders after thousands of dollars worth of meat was stolen this week.

Joe Dickinson of Dickinson Farms says two of his large freezers in one store building on the farm were cleaned out and much of the contents were stolen from another. He estimates about $4,000 worth of meat is missing.

It was a day like any other: Dickinson says he was at work picking up meat to sell to a family member when he noticed that the lid of a freezer was ajar and slightly empty. He chalked it up to his own mistake and went to a second freezer, which was also slightly emptier.

LISTEN: Lambton cattle farmer forced to suspend orders after beef theft

“Then I noticed my meat scale was missing and it hit me like a bolt of lightning,” he said. “So I opened my big freezer where all my steaks, all my roasts and the valuable stuff were kept, and it was empty.”

One freezer had a whole animal’s worth of beef stored in it and was almost empty. Another freezer was missing about 40 pounds, and a third freezer was missing all of the steaks it contained.

Dickinson said since he does not live on the farm, the theft could have happened within about 24 hours of his discovery.

Dickinson says he never worried that something like this would happen because he assumed that if thieves ever took something, it would be an ATV, a tractor or other expensive equipment or tools.

However, the freezers were difficult to get to, he said. It felt a bit more “personal” because the thieves knew where to look and only stole from the freezers.

“You have to know what you’re looking for,” he said. “If they took something else, it’s covered by insurance. It is what it is, and eventually we’ll find them.”

Meat theft feels ‘more personal’, says farmer

“They took away what I make money from, so this affects me a little differently now.”

Dickinson says he alerted police and the OPP said they are investigating.

He says his company will cope with the theft, but in the meantime they have had to suspend orders.

Dickinson says they will explore additional security options in the future, but they are somewhat limited by the lack of Wi-Fi on the farm.