Wholesale · Co-Packing · Hot Dogs
Hot dog co-packing.
Emulsified hot dogs are the hardest sausage to co-pack well — a fine-grind, tight-tolerance process most small plants won’t touch and big plants only run at commodity scale. Stittsworth runs it for premium brands: we produce the beef and bison hot dogs for Force of Nature, one of the most demanding regenerative meat brands in the country.
If you’re a brand built on sourcing — grass-fed, bison, regenerative, single-origin — the hot dog is one of the best products you can add: familiar format, premium story, year-round demand. The bottleneck is always the same: finding a USDA plant that can emulsify properly at your scale without treating your protein like commodity trim.
That’s the exact niche we fill. Small enough to care about your fat targets. Experienced enough to hold them, run after run.
What your dogs can be.
Emulsified process
Coarse then fine grind, paddle-mixed to the smooth texture a real hot dog demands. Tight process temps (18–25°F).
Species flexibility
Beef and bison in production today — with bison fat targets held at 3–7%. Label approvals completed for ground elk and venison.
Real wood smoke
Smoked in the smokehouse over hardwood — not sprayed with liquid smoke on a conveyor.
Retail packs
8 oz retail packs, fresh or frozen, built for the grocery set.
Clean formulation
Whole-muscle quality standards and real-ingredient recipes — the premium end of the category, not the commodity end.
Documentation
Executed co-pack agreements, spec sheets, and traceability support for qualified partners under NDA.
Made for Force of Nature.
Force of Nature (FON) built its name on regenerative sourcing and uncompromising standards — and Stittsworth produces their beef hot dogs (frozen 8 oz) and bison hot dogs (fresh and frozen 8 oz retail packs). Coarse-to-fine grind, paddle-mixed emulsification, bison fat held at 3–7%, real wood smoke. Executed co-pack agreements and full production documentation are available to qualified partners under NDA.
When your co-packer already passes the audit of a brand like that, your program inherits the process.
Who this is (and isn’t) for.
Right fit: premium and specialty-protein brands (grass-fed, bison, heritage pork), ranch programs turning their own animals into retail product, and regional brands that want a hot dog with a real ingredient deck.
Wrong fit: commodity dogs chasing the lowest cost per pound, mechanically separated meat formulations, or day-one runs in the hundreds of thousands of units. We’re the craft end of a category that desperately needs one.
Can you make hot dogs from bison, grass-fed beef, or other specialty proteins?
Yes — specialty proteins are our lane. We produce beef and bison hot dogs for Force of Nature, holding species-specific fat targets (3–7% for bison), and we have completed label approvals for ground elk and venison products. If your program is built on sourcing, we can carry it through production.
What makes an emulsified hot dog different from a regular sausage?
Emulsified products go through a coarse-then-fine grind and paddle-mixing process that turns the meat block into a smooth, uniform texture — the classic hot dog bite. It is a distinct skill set from coarse-ground sausage, with tight temperature control (we process at 18–25°F) and unforgiving fat targets.
What pack formats do you run?
8 oz retail packs, fresh or frozen, under your brand. Bulk and food-service formats are handled case by case on the discovery call.
Is production USDA inspected?
Yes — all production runs under USDA inspection in our Bemidji, Minnesota facility, with executed co-pack agreements and full documentation available to qualified partners under NDA.
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Let’s talk
Let’s talk about your dog.
Call (218) 751-1320 or submit a co-pack inquiry. We’ll get back within two business days.