We’ve heard surprisingly little debate about the Meat Industry Hall of Fame‘s inaugural class. The same folks who spent years droning on about the pass-catching virtues of Art Monk have uttered nary a peep about whether Paul Engler deserved enshrinement in his own version of Canton. And why no wailing and gnashing of teeth over the lack of posthumous love shown to Mahmut Aygun, the man behind the doner kebab?
One inductee we certainly can’t argue with, though, is Ray Townsend, without whom the modern hot dog would not exist. His flagship invention was the Frank-a-Matic, the world’s first automatic sausage linker, capable of spewing forth 30,000 hot dogs per hour. (Note that this machine is not to be confused with Croatian handball star Franka Matic.) We dare say the world would be a much gloomier (though perhaps somewhat healthier) place without Townsend’s ingenuity—though we doubt the globe’s porcine and bovine residents would agree with that assessment.
In case you missed the induction festivities in Chicago, there’s a photo gallery of the glitz and glamour here. We imagine the cocktail frankfurters they served at this shindig were truly first rate.
J.Jagels // Dec 10, 2009 at 8:06 am
First “Peep”.
For any carnivores that enjoy the aroma of a fine steak, or the lustful sizzle of a hamburger on the grill, of course Paul Engler deserves to be in the Meat Industry Hall of Fame.
The innovative practices, formulas, and lobbying that he has, and continues to bring to the cattle industry are renown. He has streamlined the producer/feeder/packer interaction and enabled a better pricing model for all.
While the emphasis is on producing the maximum yield for everyone involved in the process of raising beef cattle, the ultimate winner is the end line consumer. Producing a consistent product at a fair price, enables the beef products to be delivered to the market place and ultimately to “our” tables.
I offer my congratulations to Mr. Paul Engler, who is truly a “Rare Medium that is Well Done”.
Happy Holidays to ALL
Brendan I. Koerner // Dec 10, 2009 at 8:56 am
@J.Jagels: Many thanks for the comment. I wasn’t familiar with Mr. Engels work before writing this post; interesting to hear an informed take on his contributions to the industry, and thus his worthiness for enshrinement.
If you haven’t seen it already, here’s a lengthy 2006 interview with the man, via the Cattle Network:
http://www.cattlenetwork.com/Jolley–Five-Minutes-With-Paul-Engler/2006-11-03/Article.aspx?oid=744797
Chuck Jolley // Dec 18, 2009 at 10:54 am
Kind words above about two of my favorite people – Paul Engler and Ray Townsend. Nominations are open for members of the 2010 class of the Meat Industry Hall of Fame. Email me or go to the web site.