The Times - Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley

DAYTON-Dayton Cut and Wrap is back in business doing mobile slaughter, and is under new ownership.

Joe Nyce owned and operated the business with his brother in law Roger Trump since the 1980s, before the Westergreen family came on board with Tucannon Meats in 2006.

The business became available in March of this year, and Scott Groom, a butcher from Walla Walla, bought the business from Nyce, and opened shop on June 1. Groom changed the name back to "Dayton Cut and Wrap."

"I was here running it, and needed to leave," said Nyce who is retired, and likes it that way.

"It's a very physical job. If you don't do it every day, you get out of shape fast. It's hard work. Since [Groom] has been cutting meat he knows already," Nyce said.

Groom said he was working at Super 1 grocery store in Walla Walla, and thinking about opening his own butcher shop, when he heard about the opportunity in Dayton, and met with Nyce.

About the name change Groom said, "I thought it would be nice to put it back to how the community knew if for years."

Groom had one request for those who bought meat in wire crates from the Westergreens.

"Please bring the wire crates that were loaned to you back," Groom said. "Joe would love to have them back."

Nyce explained that meat freezes in 24 hours in wire crates, but it takes 48 hours or more to freeze meat in cardboard boxes.

Nyce said he thinks Groom will be "chin deep" in processing beef and hogs soon. "You can make a good living," he said.

Besides mobile slaughter, Dayton Cut & Wrap will offer smoked jerky, pepperoni and turkeys.

Dayton Cut & Wrap is located at 406 East Main Street. Hours of operation are: Monday-Friday, from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. The shop phone number is (509) 382-4371. Groom can also be reached by cell phone at (509) 386-7093.