Sussex Meat Packing marks milestone

Sussex Meat Packing, 205 Route 23 in the Wantage Plaza in Sussex, recently celebrated its 20th anniversary in that location.

The business has been a staple of Sussex County for the past 60 years. Its roots began in the 1950s in Holland, where Andrew Vanden Akker was a farmer and a local butcher store owner.

In 1957, the family of 11 immigrated to the United States, bringing their talent and knowledge of farming and butchering.

Andrew’s son Henry took over the slaughtering and wholesale operation and worked with many local farmers to help harvest their meat. His experience in retail started small, with a six-foot meat case in a small shop in Wantage.

Business and memories grew there for many years, enabling Henry to provide quality meats at bargain prices while butchering for local farmers and hunters.

With demand growing, Henry was able to open stores at two more locations. Later, he sold the two other locations. He remains a popular and friendly face at the Wantage location.

The move into the Wantage Plaza opened up new opportunities, including a staggering selection of fresh meats, a deli department, a full kitchen offering lunch and dinner specials, and a full line of catering for any occasion.

The business expanded its dry goods and frozen food offerings with the additional space. The star of the show is the 50-foot meat case, offering beef, pork and poultry.

Nothing at Sussex Meat Packing is prepackaged, making it easy for families to buy only what they need. The poultry comes in fresh daily. All pork and beef is cut on the premises, and the ground round is ground fresh several times a day in the store.

The deli serves Boar’s Head and Thumann’s deli meats and cooks turkey breast and roast beef in-house. There are several store-made pasta and potato salad options as well as a full line of sandwiches, wraps and made-to-order salads as well as party subs and sandwich platters.

The kitchen cooks up daily lunch and dinner specials and offers a family dinner deal, which feeds a family of four or five for $25.99.