# Marketing Your Homegrown Beef



## Ken Scharabok (May 11, 2002)

If you sell your homegrown beef, how do you do so? How do you price it? What is the chain between your field and their freezer? What advice would you give to others considering doing so. Please keep the thread on topic. If you want to possibly become a buyer, please do so through private mail.


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## bretthunting (Sep 28, 2005)

KEN
sorry this thread has not taken off, i have been checking in to see some of the responses. we are thinking of doing something along this idea and i was hoping to see some responses. we would like to raise beef and pork for sale hormone free and possibly offer only beef,only pork or combo packs,we have not really worked out all of the details yet, what do think, maybe work or not.


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## Ken Scharabok (May 11, 2002)

I have sold a grand total of one large calf locally for freezer beef in about four attempts.

On the flip side of this venture, several aspects need to be kept in mind: 1) If you live in an area with numerous small farms, most people may have a family member from which they already obtain their beef in bulk. 2) Fewer and fewer homes now have a large freezer, which would be required. 3) Family sizes are smaller, resulting in a decreased demand for beef, particularly in bulk. 4) The ready convenience of supermarkets, which often put beef on sale as a marketing lure. 5) Two income families, resulting in more and more meals either being eaten out of the home or meals being purchased precooked. 6) Bad press on possible health hazards of eating red meat, coupled with frequent advertising by the poultry and hog industries as healthier alternatives. 7) Although people say they want quality food, getting them to buy it is difficult. 8) The vast majority of people are no longer accustomed to buying a product in bulk. 9) Assuming half of the 125 pounds of red meat eaten by the average American annually is consumed at home, a typical whole beef carcass would last a family of four for almost two years, 10) Much of what they would receive would be hamburger or stew meat, 11) Forage-finished beef needs to be slow-cooked to be at its best, but most people today are use to quick cooking and 12) despite years and years of advertising and good press, buyers of organic products still account for a very small percent of residential consumers.


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## JulieLou42 (Mar 28, 2005)

We have many neighbors who hunt, even go over to Montana and shoot bison in the pasture and share it with another family.

I was able to sell half my 688# steer's meat to one of my neighbors who doesn't hunt, but lives less than half mile from me and whose home is visible from ours. They knew what I've put into raising that steer. And, they have two LARGE freezers. 

I was able to bring home $2.25# fully wrapped and frozen; it had hung for 9 days, not the usual 10 because the processor was right into hunting season when he was put down. 

Neighbors thought he was a bit more fatty than expected, but very tasty anyway.

These particular neighbors are some of our very best friends around here, and we both relocated to this area within a year of each other.

Now that we have our own BIG freezer, I don't intend to sell anymore of my steers, unless finances dictate that I do. This one paid for most of that new freezer! But, if I wanted to sell another, I probably could without much trouble.


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## Up North (Nov 29, 2005)

I must say I am dissapointed this thread hasn't taken off. I have a dairy and do not want to have to grow numbers and confine my cows in order to increase my income. Therefore my DH and I are looking at ways of diversifiying. I always hold back some dairy bulls to raise as feeders. This year we had 3 large ones big enough to butcher. We put one in my freezer and split the other 2 with family members. I transported them to a butcher where they were killed cut and wrapped. I charged $1.50 hanging weight for the steers I sold plus the cost of processing on top of that. The processed meat was then picked up by the people that bought it.


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## Ken Scharabok (May 11, 2002)

Up North:

Did you happen to record total weight, hanging weights, actual pounds of beef picked up and what their processing cost were? I'm trying to back into what their average cost per pound picked up was.

Were the bulls left intact or steered?


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## Up North (Nov 29, 2005)

These were steers that we sold. All I got was the hanging weight. They were both around 450 lbs. My processor doesn't weigh the meat after it is packaged. Just one more step that makes more work. They are a small family buisness with LOTS of clients. They charged $25 for slaughter and .25 cents per pound (hanging weight) for cutting and wrapping.


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## Ken Scharabok (May 11, 2002)

OK, looks like they paid about $2.60 per pound for what they put in the freezer. A 450 pound carcass should yield about 315 pounds of processed beef (however, Holsteins are noted for being big boned). They paid a total of $812.50 ($675 for carcass, $25 kill and $112.50 for processing).

$2.60 is about what the average retail price of all cuts of beef has been for some years now.

Using a 60% dress out weight, liveweight should have been about 750 pounds. Basically a yearling bull weight.

You realized the $675 for it (minus haul bill). You may know what a yearling bull weighing 750 pounds would have brought at a local sales barn. Say it is $85 hundred weight, or $637.50. Using the above assumptions you grossed about $37.50 over sales barn price.


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## angus_guy (Jun 22, 2004)

Ken et. al.

I have sold for three years First year I was stupid and did not know what i was doing write that off as stupid tax

second and third years I sold by the pound of LIVE weight 
my latest was an angus Heifer that did not have all of her mommy parts. I sold her for $1.00 pound based on weight in at the Slaughter house she weighed 1220 

Price goes like this
$22.00 Kill Fee
All charges are per pound of hanging weight 
$0.34 Standard processing fee
$0.15 Vaccuum pack
.09 Steak one or two per pack
.09 Boneless Cuts (Filet, Rib Eye, NY Strip)

SHe weighed 680 hanging which gives 2.49 / lb of Frozen , Vacuum Packed Meat

Just a note that I am going up to 1.15 or 1.20 this year for the same animal that would have translated to 2.75 to 2.85 per LB


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## Christiaan (Mar 13, 2004)

I raise one Highland steer each year, except for next year because the cow had a heifer this year. I sell to family first, then offer it to customers at the organic produce stand that buys my eggs. Under Washington law I can only sell whole, half or quarter. The buyer pays their share of the $40 kill fee, cut and wrap (last year 49cents/lb hanging weight) and $5/lb hanging weight. Last year's steer (Nigel) came in at 500 lbs, I sold 3/4 of him. That's $1875. Since I raise strictly grass and hay my costs for Nigel were approximately $545 including hay, mineral blocks, worming and the breeding fee that conceived him. Pretty good profit!


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## Ken Scharabok (May 11, 2002)

Christiaan:

Running the numbers. A 500 pound carcass should yield about 350 pounds of freezer beef after shrink* and the extra fat and bones are removed. You took 1/4rd (some 87.5 lbs) leaving 3/4rds (some 262.5 lbs).

*Shrink is the loss due to mostly dehydration as a carcass hangs. The longer the hang, the more tender the beef, but also the less there is of it by weight. A strink of 2%, or 10 pounds, may be fairly typical. A secondary shrink depends on the butcher. Did they overcome the temptation to pull off one nice steak or roast for their family dinner that night?

For ease, say one person had taken the remainding 3/4rds and ignoring shrink. They paid $1,875 for 3/4rds of the carcass (500 x .75 x $5), $30 kill fee and $184 for processing (500 x .75 x $.49) for a total of a total of $2,089 for some 262.5 pounds of beef, or $7.96 pound. Since the bulk of the carcass would have been roasts, stew cubes or hamburger, pretty expensive beef considering it wasn't even organic (you wormed).

Problem with something like this is it is extremely difficult to replicate on any type of a large scale. $7.96 pound for a really nice, low-fat T-Bone may not be out of line, but pretty expensive for roasts, stew meat and hamburger. You likely found a very small nitch market willing to pay, IMHO, extremely high prices for largely hype. You sold one small carcass. Could you sell 3,4 or 5 on the same basis?

An argument can be made even the prime cuts, such as the T-bones, weren't of really high quality (at least according to the generally accepted USDA grading standards) since they had to be slow cooked to be really tender. What is the difference between a slow-cooked steak and an oven roast - not much.

Sorry, but when it come to a grill steak I want as much intermusclar fat as possible and then just flash cook the outside to leave the inside slightly bloody to light red. Oh man, grilled beef fat doesn't get any better as far as taste. Personally, I'm willing to pay supermarket price for that beef. But then I'm not going to pay more than $3.00 pound for a really nice roast or more than $2.00 pound for nice hamburger either.


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## Christiaan (Mar 13, 2004)

This beef didn't hang very long as part had to get sent out soon after slaughter. Even so, there isn't much shrinkage on my Highlands. The time we've actually checked was on a 21 day hanging carcass and it came out at 6%.
I do low and slow and hot and fast with my grass fed beef and it comes out just fine both ways. The steaks may be a bit chewier, but hardly what I would call tough. I like my steaks blue and my roasts bloody.


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## Laura Workman (May 10, 2002)

I had a 15-month-old Dexter bull butchered in December. HW was 354 lb. I sold half for $1.75 per pound plus kill, cut & wrap. He hung 10 days and was very lean. When he got home, we immediately had steaks. Man, that was some good eatin'! Very lean, tender and juicy, and what terrific flavor! My favorite fancy, shmancy restaurant doesn't make prime rib that good (too much fat, not enough flavor).

This guy was raised purely on pasture and hay, mostly alfalfa. I would like to have taken him just off next spring's best grass, but he was blowing fences and had to go now. I was a little worried because of the timing, but he is some seriously good cow. Maybe no grain works better for some breeds than others. It sure seems to work for Dexters, this being our third. I've heard it works well on Highlands, too.

Oh yeah, forgot. Field to freezer. Bull standing in field. Butcher shoots him and takes him to the shop for processing. Customer picks up beef at the butcher's place.


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## affenpinschermom (May 10, 2002)

We raise highland beef, too. We raise it primarily for selling breeding stock, but do have to butcher an occassional steer or older cow. The older cows get ground up into hamburger and it has always been prime burger, best I've ever had. We find hamburger is the easiest to sell. word of mouth was always how we sold it. It is getting tougher every year to sell for the reasons Ken stated above. This year we will butcher a steer ourselves. We did it two years ago, also. We wrapped it so well that although the meat has been in the freezer now for just shy of two years, you can not tell it didn't go in the freezer last week. It paid to do a good job of wrapping.


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## Jena (Aug 13, 2003)

I sold lots of beef. I sold whole or side at $1.75/hanging weight, plus processing. My prices might have changed since I was selling, I don't even know what the market is right now. I was shooting to get $100/cwt.

I also sold by the cut. I had them processed at USDA facilities and carried the meat around in trailers to farmers markets, etc. Prices ranged from $2.49 for burger to $9.99 for rib-eyes. It is easier to sell cuts than halves, but it's more hassle, but that is what I was doing and it paid well.

There is an art to figuring out what to keep as what. I had chuck and round turned into burger during the summer as burger sold well and otherwise I'd be stuck with all those chuck roasts! It depends on your market and demand.

Licensing wasn't as hard as you might think, check with local health department and here in IL, the department of ag.

Jena


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## Mark T (Jan 7, 2003)

I raise grass-fed organic beef in Central Virginia. Most of my customers are in Charlottesville.

I sell the beef as petite beef - 10 or 11 months old. This makes putting a side in the top of a normal freezer possible, so people without a stand-alone freezer can buy from me. I also like the fact that the meat is still tender - many of my referrals come from people who have enjoyed the tenderness and flavor. Many grass producers keep the animals too long - grass-fed grows slower than grain-fed and many grass producers want to take their animals to "full size," even if the resulting meat is tougher. Additionally, I don't keep animals through the winter so keep my hay expenses to just my milk cow and sheep.

I charge $2/pound live weight. I deliver to the butcher and the customers pay processing costs. Customers put in their reservations in January and February, putting down a $100 per side deposit. The deposits help cover cash expenses during the year and mean I can operate with no loans and little investment capital.

If the calves get to 500 pounds, that is $1000 per animal gross, with expenses in the range of:

$100-$150 Cost of bottle calf
$100 milk replacer (Which I'd like to reduce by grafting calves onto my milk cow, but didn't manage it last year and was too busy to try this year)
$100-$150 Electric fencing maintenance and repair (approximately - you may get by with less; I have a plague of deer that basically destroy my fencing system yearly).
$100 hay costs at the beginning and end of the season.
I don't worm, controlling parasites through pasture rotation, chickens, and manure kicking.
$10/animal hauling costs (I borrow a neighbor's Ford 350 and trailer in return for filling up the gas tanks)
I don't figure on land/barn costs as one probably should. But I figure any barn depreciation/land cost is covered by tax advantages and would be paying the mortgage whether or not I had livestock.
$10/animal miscellaneous (gas for mower and chain saw, new nipples, etc.)

So if we average $470 or so per animal, that is a profit of $530/animal. I do eight per year, not including the calf for our freezer. So it comes to about $4240 net.

Time:
2 hrs/day (bottle-feeding, barn cleaning, etc.) January-March = 180 hours
3 long weekends at the start of grazing for fencing repair/rebuilding = 60 hours (though I could probably be more efficient)
1 hour/day April-November (Moving animals to new paddock, watering, kicking manure, weed control this period also could be charged to the poultry operation since I also move and feed the chicken tractors) = 240 hours
1 day catching, hauling and delivering cattle to butcher = 8 hours (my cattle handling facilities are low-cost but labor-intensive)
1 half day meeting customers at the butcher to receive payment and help load meat into coolers = 4 hours
My wife does all the calling and coordination with customers, so add a few hours in to give us a nice round number of 500 hours. So we are looking at a little over $8/hour.

If you add in the eggs, lamb, and pigs we also cover within that labor pool, we do a little better.

Obviously, it would be hard to live on this income. But I enjoy the work, the kids like to help, and we get real satisfaction when people tell us how much they enjoy our meat.

If you are looking to do this, you could reduce the amount of time required, particularly during the pasture season by not doing daily paddock changes, having a watering system better than our hose and buckets, and not kicking manure daily. Of course, more infrequent pasture changes and no kicking would mean that you would probably have to use chemical wormers. Plus, your grass production per acre would decline. The shorter the grazing period the better. But reducing the rate of rotation would also save on fencing subdivision costs. It comes down to land vs. labor.

My labor has made out nine acres very productive. With only a half-acre set aside for the house, play yard, and garden, our 8 1/2 acres supports a pretty impressive amount of animals for Central Virginia. Last year we ran an Ayrshire milk cow, nine calves, five ewes with lambs, and three pigs on those 8 1/2 acres. They were on total pasture with no grain from mid-March through mid October (the pigs got some grain). We would have made it all the way through to slaughtering if not for the drought, but I figure we did pretty well since the neighboring cattlemen were feeding hay from July onwards. Fast rotation really helps the grass produce.

The calves were smaller from the drought last year - ranging between 420-450 pounds, so I didn't make as much as the best case scenario above would indicate. But at 35% cut and wrapped weight, we produced 1200-1300 pounds of beef. The pigs were 370-450 pounds, so call maybe 700 pounds cut and wrapped in the freezer. Add in about 500 dozen eggs. I'm pretty proud of producing a ton of meat from 8 1/2 acres.

As for marketing, we started small - the first year we raised two calves, then four, then eight. We are maxed out now, but could have sold 12 last year without really trying. I'm not much of a marketer. We originally sold to a couple of friends and family members, and they liked the meat so much they became our missionaries, extolling the flavor and tenderness. The fact that we are organic (not certified) also helps. Living in an affluent college town gives you a pool of potential customers. If you provide a good product, these folks will pass your name on to others. This year I just had to call last year's customers and they sent deposits. I'm jumping up to seven pigs this year, so don't have all of those sides sold yet, but am reasonably confident I will be able to. If I have an unsold pig at the end of May, he'll be around the right size for a church pig roast at 200 or so pounds.

I may have rambled there, but hope I have given people some ideas. I doubt you'll ever get rich, but it sure is a pleasant way to spend evenings with your kids.

UPDATE: If you are in Virginia, you definitely want to sell "live weight" basis. You may do all the delivering to the butcher for your buyers, but they are buying live animals, so you don't get into all the red tape you'd have if you were selling meat.

Butchering costs for customers last year were a $30 kill fee (split between halves) and 36 cents per pound of hanging weight cut and wrapped). One of my businessmen customers weighed his meat and calculated his toral cost was $6 per pound. The pigs would be less per pound because they dress out at a higher rate.


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## Ken Scharabok (May 11, 2002)

Adjusting for liveweight need not be all that difficult. You can purchase weight tapes which are reasonably accurate. Or you can charge an estimate, with a final adjustment based on either scale weight when off-loaded at the processor or hanging weight.

It is fairly safe to use 60% of liveweight as hanging weight. Thus, a 500-lb hanging carcass should have weighed about 833 lbs liveweight. If you were going to charge $2.00 lb hanging weight, just divide $1000 by 833 to come to a liveweight price of $1.20 pound. Doesn't beat a scale, but likely close enough and relatively simply to apply.

For example, you eyeballed that yearling calf at 800 pounds and charged $1.20 lb for $960. Hanging weight was the 500 pounds, so an adjustment is required of $40 more from the buyer. Were it me, I'd eyeball high and then plan to give a refund.

Actually, $1.20 pound is not far off from what really nice yearling calves are selling for now.

Also, if you produce fairly consistent calves, you can adjust the 60% factor based on your actual experience.


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## Ken Scharabok (May 11, 2002)

Admin action.


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## furholler (Feb 1, 2005)

The size of the animal and freezer was mentioned here. We are interested in pursuing grassfed beef whith Dexters as a smaller size for families (which is one reason I'm not a big fan of pedigrees). Do you think this is viable? Of course, our goal is to feed ourselves first but maybe in a few years we'll sell some. Interesting thread.


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## robin f (Nov 26, 2007)

well i could sell all kinds at the price i charge, i grow corn fed red veal, up to 600Lbs on the hoof,at around 6 months of age ( taped not scaled ) i have many ppl asking me for it, i sell up to 6 per year, by the side or whole, 

the cost of rearing is between $1.13 and a $1,27 per lb dead weight (differant animals, differant breeds, differant purchace price ( holstien and ayrshire) the kill cost per animal is $17.00, the cutting and wraping is .28c /lb, that includes the hanging for 12 to 14 days

600lbs, kill out (at least 58% ) is 348lbs costs me ( at the higher rearering cost) $442.00 + $17.00, + $98,= $557, for the whole animal, (58% is the average that i get between my tapeing and the kill scale)

I get $5.50/lb, 348 x 5.50 =$1914.-557 =$1357.00 profit ( give or take a little, due to differant weights, and rates of gain. 
you can have the roasts as small or as big as you want, as many steaks in a pack as you want, hamburger with little or lots of fat, in fact any way you want it, you can even have the whole animal to cut yourself if you want, or the whole animal for a spit roasting ( which i have had asked for once last year and have another ordered for this year still the same price) 
I have done no advertizeing, word of mouth and giving away a steak or two here and there has done it all for me, if you get chatting to someone, say, hey would you like to try a good steak or two, if they say yes , next time you are going to see them at a meeting or out at the bar or wherever, take them a couple of steaks, ....... they will soon want more.
most are sold by the side delivered. its easy, no hassles.
i always say, if after your first roast or steak, you do not like it, i will take it back, 100%.


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## francismilker (Jan 12, 2006)

I sale at least two calves a year. Both of them being show steers. In the past couple of years, we've charged $2.00 per pound hanging weight and buyer pays their own processing. It has worked out well for me in the past but I'll have to raise it this year because of feed price increases. 
I've got a dairyman friend who has always marketed his own holstein steers in the past who has a very large clientale (SP) in his area. He has charged $1.90 per pound hanging weight for several years now. Due to increasing feed costs, he's going to stop doing it at all. He claims doing it on the scale he was,(100 per year), it's too big a risk and investment with the unstable, rising corn prices.


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## PamB (Jan 15, 2008)

We have been selling angus steers for 7 yrs. We started out with 4 bred heifers back then. We never have problems selling the beef, we take it to the butcher, the buyer picks up the meat (although for friends or family and if we have our own beef to pick up I will pick it up for them)we sell by the hanging weight and the buyer pays the processing. We advertised in a few local papers in the greater Detroit area, where are daughters live, a few years ago, we had lots of calls but only one sale (which we delivered on a visit to our girls). We also advertised in our local paper, same thing lots of calls but no sales. What isn't sold to family or friends is sold by word of mouth, most people want to know where their meat comes from. We have been selling for $1.65-1.80 a pound. We will be raising our prices this year. We are considering having some processed at a USDA inspected place which has gotten licensed this last year, they are about an hour from us, and selling by the piece, but I need to do some research on what I need to be able to sell it this way. I am thinking maybe our local farmer's market would be a good place to start selling. This has been an interesting topic, it is good to see what others are doing. Pam


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## GANGGREEN (Jul 13, 2006)

I've never sold beef before but just got started with a small herd with the intention of putting 1/2 side in my own freezer each year and selling 3 halves per year. They're Highland cows and will be "all natural" though I'll likely grain them some towards finishing time. I've had at least half a dozen folks hunt me down and ask me to put them on a list when/if I start selling and I haven't done anything to market the animals at all. Now, will those people still be interested when it's time to put up the cash? In most of their cases, I suspect that they will but I guess I'll find out. 

I'm thinking of charging $2.25 per pound hanging weight +processing and most of the people that I've told that to haven't flinched.


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## 3legdonkey (Sep 18, 2011)

Bump.

Would be great to get some current numbers and experiences (last post was 2008). I am wondering with the changed economy and with the larger grassed market if more people are buying home grown beef and if the prices have changed?


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## stifflej (Aug 11, 2008)

I am selling for 2.85 a hanging lb, which includes kill, butcher and wrapping costs (about 50 cents a lb) and will probably be at 3 or a little higher next year. I am very small though, only sell to family and friends. If you look at prices in wally world, burger is creeping closer to $3 lb as well, so they are still getting a bargain.


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## 3legdonkey (Sep 18, 2011)

stifflej said:


> I am selling for 2.85 a hanging lb, which includes kill, butcher and wrapping costs (about 50 cents a lb) and will probably be at 3 or a little higher next year. I am very small though, only sell to family and friends. If you look at prices in wally world, burger is creeping closer to $3 lb as well, so they are still getting a bargain.


If we assume a 1000#s hoof weight with 55% left on the rail giving us 550#s you are getting 1.29 per pound which is .15c more then they were getting at auction in your area this week.
(1000x.55)x2.35/1000=1.29 per #

I would say you are giving your family and friends a very good deal on what is probably a great product! And since at least 12% of the meat price at WM is salt water their price is really closer to 3.36 per #. So even after you take some loss from shrinkage with aging and loss of weight due to bones etc you could up your price and still beat WM in both price and quality.


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## mozarkian (Dec 11, 2009)

We only sell beef to my sons, rest are sold on hoof as feeder calves or yearling bulls. I think our sons are getting a good deal as we furnish the calf, the feed and the work and send 2 at a time to processor. The boys pay the processing. You hopefully are making more profit at beef than we are! LOL


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## 3legdonkey (Sep 18, 2011)

Interesting related bit of info.

My wife just came home from Wal-Mart with prices on hamburger for me.

Regular hamburger was from $4 - $5 a # depending on if it was on sale or not.
Grass fed hamburger on sale was 6.99 (expiration date of today)
Grass fed hamburger not on sale was 7.99 a #


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## lonelyfarmgirl (Feb 6, 2005)

we sell by the cut mostly, and people come. I only advertise online and in the local farm atlas. We also sell to the schools. The first 6 months selling retail was tough. only a couple customers. year 2 was much better. a new person every month. year three, we have a csa, and at least one additional person a week call for meat. most times they buy more than 100$ worth. The school bought 6000# of beef and will probably buy 4 or 5 pigs this year.
all grass fed beef, no soy pasture pork.


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## kycrawler (Sep 18, 2011)

We raise 60-70 head of holstiens and holstien jersey cross calves every year . Calves are bought at 3 days old and raised on nurse cows and buckets . Calves are pasture and hay fed and fed feed ground here on the farm . I cut 2 bunks full of silage for winter feed we send the calves to butcher at 14-1500lbs i sell quite a few quarters and halves on craigslist and sell most of the rest through 3 health food stores in Indianapolis. The beef i sell on craigslist is 2.25 a lb hanging weight plus $30 kill fee and .44 cents a lb hanging weight . They pick thier beef up at the butcher . We get a deposit in hand from each party before the calf goes to the butcher rarely any problems . The health food store beef goes to a different butcher . they are a higher priced facility but are state and federal inspected and do an ecoli test so the meat can be resold .


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## JHinCA (Sep 20, 2003)

I haven't shopped for meat in so long I had no idea what store prices were!



3legdonkey said:


> Interesting related bit of info.
> 
> My wife just came home from Wal-Mart with prices on hamburger for me.
> 
> ...


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## 3legdonkey (Sep 18, 2011)

The prices do seem a little crazy. I can buy cull lobsters (missing one claw) for 7.99 a #. Why eat burger... Grin.


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## HDRider (Jul 21, 2011)

Ken Scharabok said:


> Christiaan:
> 
> Running the numbers. A 500 pound carcass should yield about 350 pounds of freezer beef after shrink* and the extra fat and bones are removed. You took 1/4rd (some 87.5 lbs) leaving 3/4rds (some 262.5 lbs).
> 
> ...


I don't think there is any way a small producer can compete on price with large scale industrial agri.


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## HDRider (Jul 21, 2011)

GANGGREEN said:


> I've never sold beef before but just got started with a small herd with the intention of putting 1/2 side in my own freezer each year and selling 3 halves per year. They're Highland cows and will be "all natural" though I'll likely grain them some towards finishing time. I've had at least half a dozen folks hunt me down and ask me to put them on a list when/if I start selling and I haven't done anything to market the animals at all. Now, will those people still be interested when it's time to put up the cash? In most of their cases, I suspect that they will but I guess I'll find out.
> 
> I'm thinking of charging $2.25 per pound hanging weight +processing and most of the people that I've told that to haven't flinched.


GANGGREEN - How about an update?


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