Shellmouth Sausage has recently changed ownership at the beginning of June and although there is a new owner, he is no stranger to the business.
“I’ve been working here for two years under Don,” said Shellmouth Sausage Owner and Operator Daniel Bouchard. “Don got me into everything and trained me from start to finish as soon as I got hired. It was under the impression that I would be buying the place instead of working here.
“I used to do this when I was around 18 years old, I worked for Maple Leaf for the hog production in Brandon. I’ve had a lot of experience with butchering.”
Being the owner of the business has been a completely new experience for Bouchard. He has staff to help him at the shop and is finding the administration side of owning a business a new experience.
“It’s totally different being the owner of this business, instead of working for it,” said Bouchard. “I’ve been in the cutting room twice since I have taken over, which is so different because I was in there every day when I worked here. I hired someone to replace me and have the full-time butcher who has been doing this for over eight years.”
When it comes to the recipe that makes Shellmouth Sausage the classic product that it is, Bouchard notes he will not be changing anything about it. He may offer a few different options for services and products, but the recipes will remain the same. “I won’t be adjusting or creating a different recipe than what has been used as Shellmouth Sausage,” said Bouchard. “The only difference is we will be making a mild pepperette. We have a spicy one and have had requests from some customers who would like a milder version. The recipes will all stay the same.
“All of my customers have shared with me, to not adjust them. This recipe was used before Don opened the business. The recipes originated with the Larocque family and the original owner started up the business here. Those recipes are just too iconic around here.
“We do custom cut and wrap for bison, buffalo, goat, sheep, pigs, cows, bears, elk, and moose, so we work with both domestic and wild game,” said Bouchard. “There is such a huge Metis population in the area, so there is a need to cut and wrap wild game.
“We are now offering bone-in selections for steaks, rib steaks and roasts. We’re hoping to expand our sausage products to more places in Manitoba.
“We also have bagged party ice that we supply to a couple of locations around here like Co-op, all the lake resorts in the general area and in Grandview,” said Bouchard.
Bouchard is in the works of establishing a new service that will allow people to get local beef cuts through a method of purchasing a cow between a group of people. This allows smaller families or individuals to get premium beef at a price they can afford and in an amount they can consume.
“We will be introducing what we are calling the Four-U Pick Featured Farmer, and that consists of four people who can get into purchasing a cow together from a local farmer,” said Bouchard. “I have four farmers that have beef in the area and when we have four people interested in cost sharing a cow, we will quarter it up for them. This is perfect for those customers who don’t have $3,000 to drop on a cow for themselves.
“The farmers that I will be working with are extremely local to the area. The launch for this is coming very soon.”
Bouchard is looking forward to serving the community and customers as the new owner of Shellmouth Sausage. “My very first day as the new owner of Shellmouth Sausage was June 7,” said Bouchard. “I don’t want to change too much around here. I’m looking forward to making Roblin my home community. In total, I’ve been in Roblin for nine years, but I’ve been living in the community for about four years. My main goal is to help make this business and community the best I possibly can.”