Hunter's Liver Mush needs help with repairs, rising costs to keep Marion business operating
For more than 70 years, the Hunter family of Marion has worked hard to provide customers in western North Carolina with their liver mush. Now, the Hunter’s Liver Mush company needs help to keep this family tradition going into the future.
A GoFundMe campaign is seeking to raise $25,000 for Hunter’s Liver Mush. The family-owned company in Marion is facing needed repairs for its unique and vital equipment in the making of the liver mush and the 72-year-old building in which it is made. Phyllis Hunter Brackett stands with the mixers used in the making of the liver mush that are in need of repair. So many of the machines used in the making of Hunter’s Liver Mush were custom-made by founder Roy Hunter and his son Jerry Hunter, who is also now deceased.
Right now, a GoFundMe campaign is seeking to raise $25,000 for Hunter’s Liver Mush. The family-owned company in Marion is facing needed repairs to its unique and vital equipment for making liver mush and the 72-year-old building in which it is made. Like so many other businesses, Hunter’s has to contend with the high cost of diesel fuel used in the delivery of the pork product to grocery stores in McDowell and surrounding counties.
“Hunter's Livermush Company is an important part of the community and the surrounding counties, and right now the company needs support to keep going,” reads the GoFundMe statement. “Hunter's Livermush Company is facing urgent repair needs in order to continue making its product and serving the people who rely on it. Without these repairs, it will be much harder for the company to keep production moving and make deliveries the way it always has.”
The money raised from the GoFundMe will help cover the specific repairs the company needs most, including rebuilding the mixers, repairing the coolers and freezers, and completely repairing the delivery trucks, according to the GoFundMe statement.
The GoFundMe for Hunter’s Liver Mush was started by Vickie DePoyster (left). She wanted to do something to help her best friend Phyllis Hunter Brackett (right) and the future of Hunter’s Liver Mush. They are standing in front of the machine used to wrap the liver mush so it can be packaged for sale.
“These are essential pieces of the business, and each one plays a big role in helping the company continue operating,” reads the statement. “This fundraiser is a chance for the community to rally around a local pillar that has meant so much to so many people. Please consider supporting Hunter's Livermush Company and sharing this fundraiser with others who care about keeping this community staple going strong.”
You can see the GoFundMe fundraiser here: www.gofundme.com/f/support-hunters-livermush-company?attribution_id=sl:d30be3d0-68a5-46fb-b71a-00d8e5995ff2&lang=en_US&ts=1790937866&utm_campaign=fp_sharesheet&utm_content=amp30-treatment-6&utm_medium=customer&utm_source=copy_link
As of Friday, Oct. 9, the GoFundMe with the $25,000 goal has raised $11,609 with 240 donations.
Hunter’s Liver Mush was started by Roy and Gurthie Hunter, and they made their pork product using their recipe. It is made from pork liver, pork jowls, cornmeal and other ingredients. They started selling the liver mush right out of their car and constructed their plant building at 98 Poteat Road in Marion in the 1950s.
Hunter’s Liver Mush was started by Roy and Gurthie Hunter, and they made their pork product using their recipe. They started selling the liver mush right out of their car and constructed their plant building at 98 Poteat Road in Marion in the 1950s.
“For three generations, we've been carrying the Hunter's Livermush legacy,” reads the company’s website. “We thank everyone who has supported us throughout the decades. We strive to bring an ageless product that tastes just like the first block you took a chance on.”
Other companies make and sell liver mush. But the Hunter brand has a very devoted following and is available at grocery stores and restaurants throughout McDowell and surrounding counties. Fans of Hunter’s say it is the only liver mush they will eat.
Also, downtown Marion holds the Liver Mush Festival every June, and for years members of the Hunter family would give out free liver mush sandwiches.
Phyllis Hunter Brackett is one of the children of the late Roy and Gurthie Hunter, who founded the business. She and her siblings and their children work hard every day to keep this Marion institution going and provide their product to customers. But recently, Hunter’s Liver Mush faced some serious setbacks and the future looked uncertain.
Hunter’s Liver Mush was started by Roy and Gurthie Hunter, and they made their pork product using their recipe. It is made from pork liver, pork jowls, corn meal and other ingredients.
So many of the machines used in the making of Hunter’s Liver Mush were custom-made by Roy Hunter and his son Jerry Hunter, who is also now deceased. These include the mixers used in the actual making of the liver mush, and they need repair. Also, the wrapping machine is very old and parts for it are hard to find.
“Financially, everyone is struggling in this economy,” Brackett wrote on Facebook. “We have always put a good product out there for a reasonable price. That’s getting hard to do, too. Everything is going up in price."
The GoFundMe fundraiser was started by Vickie DePoyster, who is a longtime close friend of Brackett. She wanted to do something to help her friend with this situation.
“They have a legacy in our county that will live on,” DePoyster said. “This is a pillar in our community.”
The product can be found at various stories in McDowell, Burke, Caldwell, Catawba, Alexander and Rutherford counties. Numerous restaurants serve Hunter’s Liver Mush, usually as a breakfast food.
DePoyster said what she did for Hunter’s Liver Mush, Brackett and Brackett’s sister Louise Hunter Rumfelt and all their children was to help them keep their jobs and the tradition going. “I wanted to get her new mixers,” DePoyster said. “I see how hard she works every day and that is the least thing I could do. And I did it out of pure love and respect and gratitude for my best friend. And that’s what I did because we all love Hunter’s Liver Mush.”
Hunter’s Liver Mush has 12 employees, and most of them are family members. Like other businesses that make or prepare food, Hunter’s Liver Mush is constantly being inspected and is subject to all kinds of health rules. The plant’s walk-in coolers and freezers have to be maintained because of strict cooling temperatures.
Their product can be found at various stores in McDowell, Burke, Caldwell, Catawba, Alexander and Rutherford counties. Numerous restaurants serve Hunter’s Liver Mush, usually as a breakfast food. The Hunter family and their few employees deliver the liver mush themselves using their fleet of trucks.
These delivery trucks also need maintenance and repairs. That includes the refrigeration portions of the trucks so the liver mush can be kept cold. The trucks run on diesel fuel, which is more expensive now. In addition, the cost of many things has gone up recently.
Other companies make and sell liver mush. But the Hunter brand has a very devoted following and is available at grocery stores and restaurants throughout McDowell and surrounding counties. Fans of Hunter’s say it is the only liver mush they will eat.
“We don’t waste gas,” Brackett said. “The cost of diesel has taken its toll.”
Since the GoFundMe fundraiser was started, folks who love Hunter’s Liver Mush have come forward with donations and expressions of support. Their story has been shared across social media and other online platforms.
“All the love that has been shown to them has been remarkable,” DePoyster said.
Brackett said she and her family are very thankful for all of their loyal customers. She said she greatly appreciates the outpouring of support and love from the fans of Hunter’s Liver Mush.
“I needed that,” she said.
