Beef prices....

[Sixfivesavage]

I'm curious to see what people are getting, seeing or paying for freezer beef. I'm not talking store bought stuff. I'm talking those of us here who grow and sell direct to consumer or are a consumer who buys either by the piece from a local source, a package for the freezer or by the 1/4, 1/2 or whole animal.

So, if you're a producer, what area are you in and what are you priced at? Priced on the hoof or hook? Processing included or an additional cost handled between the butcher and the buyer? Dairy beef or a real beef animal? Dry aged? Length of aging?

If you're a buyer, what are you paying and is that direct to the producer or is that all in price after processing? Boneless or bone in? Vac sealed or paper? Dry aged or just hung a week?

 

[oneshot86]

great topic

 

[rjacobs]

Farm local to me just south of Dallas, TX is doing half side, processed for $1800. They said you should get ~300lbs of processed meat. I believe these cattle are raised to be eaten, not dairy cows that are being slaughtered.

 

[Jscb1b]

We are splitting 7 ways a 1200lbs cow. Total cost is $2100. It is a 15 month old. It is going to hang for two weeks then made into hamburger. $3 for a pound of burger.

 

[SSG69]

Can’t get one processed here. Booked WAY out

 

[Jrb572]

Same here I heard most places are booked until September

 

[McNamara0851]

I charge $3.00/lbs hanging weight for grain fed black angus steers. We sell by the quarter, buyer pays processing. I called a few weeks ago to get dates and they were booking into December. They’re currently booking well into next spring. Usually I can get a date within 2 weeks of calling. I will be processing a couple extra to fill some freezers this fall. My little business has doubled in the last few years and I get calls pretty often for small quantities.

 

[Jscb1b]

My bishop from church is a butcher. We used to butcher our own elk.

 

[Marinevet1]

I split a beef with a friend, we have done this before. This was in lat Jan., early Feb.......I would have to look, but I'm thinking around 1200 lbs, 1/2 half processed cost me about $1200.......

 

[Sixfivesavage]

I charge $3.00/lbs hanging weight for grain fed black angus steers. We sell by the quarter, buyer pays processing. I called a few weeks ago to get dates and they were booking into December. They’re currently booking well into next spring. Usually I can get a date within 2 weeks of calling. I will be processing a couple extra to fill some freezers this fall. My little business has doubled in the last few years and I get calls pretty often for small quantities.

Yea, about how it is here as well. I happened to call right after another guy canceled a date and was able to slip 3 in July 10. Otherwise, they're booking November currently. There's two places that quit taking custom work and only killing and cutting for their counter sales and two others that are booking February right now.

 

[Sixfivesavage]

We are splitting 7 ways a 1200lbs cow. Total cost is $2100. It is a 15 month old. It is going to hang for two weeks then made into hamburger. $3 for a pound of burger.

I'm assuming that's live weight you're talking.

 

[Hobo Hilton]

Being we're on this topic.... What size freezers are needed for a 1/2 ?... Or how much beef can go into one cubic foot? Looking at going to a larger freezer when I can get onto a locally butchered cow. My advantage is my location, Montana..

Hobo

 

[James Abram]

Oklahoma. Grain fed for eating beef. 1/2 for $1000, came to 485# finished. $275 for the processing. We get one every spring and it last our family all year.

 

[Jscb1b]

I'm assuming that's live weight you're talking.

Yes. Does that weight and price sound right?

 

[Sixfivesavage]

Yes. Does that weight and price sound right?

I'm not sure what your saying your end cost is going to be but the weight is on the light side, that makes sense with the age though.

 

[Jscb1b]

Total cost of cow and butchering $2100. Split 7 ways $300 each. Estimating 700 lbs of hamburger. 100 lbs each for $300.

 

[McNamara0851]

Yes. Does that weight and price sound right?

I figure live weight x ~60% equals hanging weight.
1200# x .60 = 720# total hanging weight . 720/2 = a 360# half. Processing/handling is roughly $150 per quarter, so $300 for a half
$1200 total - $300 processing fee = $900
$900 of meat / 360# = $2.50/# hanging weight.
I’m in central Illinois and I charge $3.00/#, plus processing.

If you’re happy with the quality then I’d say you’re getting a fair deal.

 

[Sixfivesavage]

Total cost of cow and butchering $2100. Split 7 ways $300 each. Estimating 700 lbs of hamburger. 100 lbs each for $300.

Seems in line with what some others have posted price wise. Can't say I know anyone who's turned an entire animal into ground though. Pricing seems all over the place depending on the region.

 

[sea2summit]

This thread makes me think there’s gonna be a lot of Fudd’s in the woods this season if things don’t change

 

[BG94591]

Just bought a whole beef, grass fed and finished. Paid $3000, slaughtered, cut and wrapped. I split it 3 ways with my mom and a friend. I paid $1500 for a half, which will be approx. 240 lbs in my freezer. I talked to another guy I know and he has them for $2300 for a whole beef cut and wrapped. Prices in Ca May be a little more than other states.

 

[McNamara0851]

I have a first calf angus heifer in the feedlot now that lost a calf during a C-Section. I will have her on grain for 120 days before I grind her 100% into burger. I intend to sell that burger for $5.00/# out of my freezer in small quantities.

 

[McNamara0851]

Just bought a whole beef, grass fed and finished. Paid $3000, slaughtered, cut and wrapped. I split it 3 ways with my mom and a friend. I paid $1500 for a half, which will be approx. 240 lbs in my freezer. I talked to another guy I know and he has them for $2300 for a whole beef cut and wrapped. Prices in Ca May be a little more than other states.

Thats a lot of jingle. I’ve considered throwing some steers on pasture and selling them as grass fed for ~$5.00/# hanging weight. I don’t care for grass fed beef personally, but as long as both parties are happy, who am I to judge.

 

[Sixfivesavage]

I'm priced at $3.98 for a quarter beef and $3.62 for a half. That's including processing. Ground beef is $6/LB, 10 lbs or more and the price drops to $5/LB. I'm sure I could get more for it, especially currently but I'm not going to gouge and I'm not sure where exactly that line is at the moment.

 

[Sixfivesavage]

Thats a lot of jingle. I’ve considered throwing some steers on pasture and selling them as grass fed for ~$5.00/# hanging weight. I don’t care for grass fed beef personally, but as long as both parties are happy, who am I to judge.

If you don't take a fools money, someone else will. Hence the "certified organic" movement and "grass fed" fad.

 

[Jscb1b]

Seems in line with what some others have posted price wise. Can't say I know anyone who's turned an entire animal into ground though. Pricing seems all over the place depending on the region.

The rancher said to make burger because of the age of the cow, 15 months. And it is grass fed.

 

[chevy_man]

If you don't take a fools money, someone else will. Hence the "certified organic" movement and "grass fed" fad.

I buy as much as I can store from my BIL when he culls heffers. If they don't have a calf or have issues the first year, they get brought into the corrals by his Dad's house and fed mixed grain for 5-8 weeks. Buying from the store I can tell by taste if it was corn fed or grass. The mixed grains give a better fat that's not as dry as grass, but not yellow like corn. Makes damn good Ribeyes and porterhouses.

Last time I paid $3/lb processed, that was sale lot price and $1/lb processing. He has a few for meat this year but their butcher is looking at November unless there are cancellations. We may be firing up a few grinders and see if we can do a cow in a weekend between 4 of us.

 

[McNamara0851]

1200lbs cow.

15 months. And it is grass fed.

Edited for clarity. Something is amiss with these statements.
Any two of these things can be true, but not likely all three.

 

[footsteps]

Our farm in the catskills, average wt hanging is 700lbs slaughter hung butchered, wrapped is $4.00 - 4.50 Lb depending on amount of ground beef
All natural Angus Hereford cross.These are my wife's
Herd...

 

[Jscb1b]

Edited for clarity. Something is amiss with these statements.
Any two of these things can be true, but not likely all three.

Would you be more specific? What's the beef?

 

[Bradu]

This thread makes me think there’s gonna be a lot of Fudd’s in the woods this season if things don’t change

But who will be processing the meat? If butcher shops are as booked as everything I've been hearing, that means people will have to butcher their own. That might stop a lot of people from hunting.

 

[MAC08]

Last beef we sold was Jan. We sell at 3.25 a pound hanging weightt hen if non FDA .77 cents or FDA .88 cents a pound butcher.

 

[BufordTJustice]

We raise all our own beef and lamb. Fischer's meats in Muenster, Texas does the processing for us and has for many years. The cattle are primarily grass fed, so we wait alittle longer, around 18-24 months old. The sheep are white Dorpers. They can be anywhere from weaning age(3 months) to a year old. For the cattle, the biggest difference that I notice is the fat. Grass fed beef will have a yellow tint on the fat vs. the white on a grain finished beef. Some people say there is a taste difference but I don't usually notice. Our beef is quite flavorful. Processing is around a dollar a pound in the freezer, that's figuring slaughter fees, custom wrap, tenderizing etc. That's off the top of my head, I'll look.

 

[wilson1911]

We raise all our own beef and lamb. Fischer's meats in Muenster, Texas does the processing for us and has for many years. The cattle are primarily grass fed, so we wait alittle longer, around 18-24 months old. The sheep are white Dorpers. They can be anywhere from weaning age(3 months) to a year old. For the cattle, the biggest difference that I notice is the fat. Grass fed beef will have a yellow tint on the fat vs. the white on a grain finished beef. Some people say there is a taste difference but I don't usually notice. Our beef is quite flavorful. Processing is around a dollar a pound in the freezer, that's figuring slaughter fees, custom wrap, tenderizing etc. That's off the top of my head, I'll look.

Fischers Grocery store is like the god of them all. Any type of braut, summer sausage, and smoked pepper jack. The walls are line with them hanging. It has all that old world feel. Walk up to the counter in the back and order a cow or pig, its the bomb.

 

[skinney_7]

A lot going on in the beef industry. We market about 600hd of Angus every year. Background 300 Strs. and the same Hfrs. Get em from about 600lb weaning weight to 800lb selling, then the bigger lots feed them out. We usually hold more than a few for locals (friends), feed them clean corn, no drugs, aquifer water, awesome meat. Our local butcher is full till Oct. Last year we sold a few to our friends for 2.40lb hanging, this year is going to be different. Especially when we have market low, after low, after limit low, and the meat coming out of the packers is at an all time high.

 

[Charger442]

Farm local to me just south of Dallas, TX is doing half side, processed for $1800. They said you should get ~300lbs of processed meat. I believe these cattle are raised to be eaten, not dairy cows that are being slaughtered.

oof. thats a high price

We are splitting 7 ways a 1200lbs cow. Total cost is $2100. It is a 15 month old. It is going to hang for two weeks then made into hamburger. $3 for a pound of burger.

not terrible. 100 lbs of ground for $300

Just bought a whole beef, grass fed and finished. Paid $3000, slaughtered, cut and wrapped. I split it 3 ways with my mom and a friend. I paid $1500 for a half, which will be approx. 240 lbs in my freezer. I talked to another guy I know and he has them for $2300 for a whole beef cut and wrapped. Prices in Ca May be a little more than other states.

that comes to $6.25/lb which seems very high but California may explain it. Something that needs some clarity for me. is it grass fed and grain finished or is it finished on grass too? if its just being grass fed until butchering then your getting an even worse deal. no offense.

Thats a lot of jingle. I’ve considered throwing some steers on pasture and selling them as grass fed for ~$5.00/# hanging weight. I don’t care for grass fed beef personally, but as long as both parties are happy, who am I to judge.

the whole grass fed thing has taken on a life of its own. its crazy. i grain finish steers for like 6 months and now this year i hear people who just want to butcher right off my pasture. that is going to be an incredibly tough and shitty tasting piece of meat.

If you don't take a fools money, someone else will. Hence the "certified organic" movement and "grass fed" fad.

aint that the truth. i have this discussion with my friends in the ag business all the time, basically about the "no antibiotics" stuff.

ok say i get a 6 month old steer that has foot rot. i hit him with a dose of LA-200 and he gets better. its another 6 months until he could go to slaughter and the antibiotics are out of his system in well under 2 weeks. so why is treating him for a bacteria a crime?

im not particularly thrilled with the newest phase-in of prescription anti-biotics for livestock. its going to further hinder small cattle producers and drive costs up.

 

[supercorndogs]

My grandpa hated the taste of fattened cows. He always said a cow off grass was best. It was probably just what he was used to, raising cattle on the dry plains of SE Colorado.

I think a big part of the "grass fed" movement is people who don't want cows that lived in knee deep shit, kept alive with antibiotics, and fed hormones while they were being fattened. Kind of like "cage free" eggs they assume this monicker is evidence of better animal treatment, and a healthier animal. And ignore the fact that you can feed grass in a feed lot, and you can de-beak chickens and let them walk free in a chicken house.

Hunters will get tags, and throw the meat away when they find out no one is available to butcher it.

We have always hung animals in the garage and butchered ourselves. Its pretty easy.

 

[rjacobs]

oof. thats a high price

I just double checked their facebook post after going through this thread.

They slaughtered 10 head last week, have a 4 week turnaround, average weight was 1100 on the hoof, and the price they listed was $1800 for a half, processed and packaged, 300-350lbs finished meat. And thats not just grinding into burger meat like some on this thread are saying they are getting which I am guessing is far cheaper to process. I dont believe they will have a single issue selling all 10 head at that price.

This particular farm has higher prices on most of their stuff that I have seen over the last year or two, but their products are always very high quality. Im not in the market for a half or even quarter. I know some of their price level has to do with how close they are to the DFW metroplex and the land value. They arent out in the sticks.

 

[Sixfivesavage]

I think a big part of the "grass fed" movement is people who don't want cows that lived in knee deep shit, kept alive with antibiotics, and fed hormones while they were being fattened. Kind of like "cage free" eggs they assume this monicker is evidence of better animal treatment, and a healthier animal. And ignore the fact that you can feed grass in a feed lot, and you can de-beak chickens and let them walk free in a chicken house.

Like everything else, fake news and misinformation. The highest quality grain, dairy and meat production is in this country. The powers that be want to stifle that just as much as they want to stifle home grown energy. Anyone who thinks animals are mistreated or drugged irresponsibilly on a large scale basis is a fool.

 

[pyplynr]

I do $5.50/lb hanging weight for the ones I sell. I pay all processing and everything else. Usually do 10-12 a year between all my family and friends.

 

[BufordTJustice]

Yes sir, Fischers has always done me a good job. I feel like I always get my animal back. I have my steaks cut really thick because that's the way I like them, but also so I know it's not just retail meat. It's about an hour and a half drive for me but definitely worth it. I take pride in raising quality animals so I like to know that's what I'm getting. Our Dorpers also taste good, so I want to make sure the meat is what it's supposed to be.The whole grass fed vs finished thing is lost on me, a full freezer of quality meat is what I'm after.

 

[BufordTJustice]

Best hamburger I ever had was an older bull that broke his dick. Had the entire bull made into hamburger, 1200lbs in the freezer.

 

[BG94591]

@Charger442 ”that comes to $6.25/lb which seems very high but California may explain it. Something that needs some clarity for me. is it grass fed and grain finished or is it finished on grass too? if its just being grass fed until butchering then your getting an even worse deal. no offense.”

no offense taken. This is the first time I've done this and I’m still learning. The lady I’m buying the steer from has been extremely helpful and came recommended by a local butcher/taxidermist/duck picker. The first guy I found that was selling a steer wanted $5000 cut and wrapped for his daughters 4H animal. With all this C19 stuff going on, fairs and such have been shut down, so he was trying to get money for his daughters hard work.

The cost of processing here in Ca, averages $1-1.09 per pound hanging weight, then $175 slaughter fee. Finding a butcher has been difficult and Kassandra has handled everything on her end, including inviting me to come hunt bear on her ranch this fall.

Around 20 April, I went to Costco and bought a prime grade brisket to smoke, I paid $3.99 per lbs, came out to about $64. Two weeks later I went back and was going to buy another and the price went up to $9.99 pp, the same brisket was $209.

$1500 is a small price to pay to make sure my family has quality protein on the table in these uncertain times.

 

[supercorndogs]

Like everything else, fake news and misinformation. The highest quality grain, dairy and meat production is in this country. The powers that be want to stifle that just as much as they want to stifle home grown energy. Anyone who thinks animals are mistreated or drugged irresponsibilly on a large scale basis is a fool.

That is all just personal opinion. Many would disagree, but few are coming up with solutions. Stuffing them into feed lot is not very good treatment. Walking around in knee deep shit isn't either. The safety and quality is a hotly debated topic these days.

 

[Rthur]

I predict many "road hunters" venturing into the mountains where cattle are grazing
popping more than a few 4-500 pounds calves.
Damned cats and bears Lol.

R

 

[Foul Mike]

And in the mean time we have 3 critters on the farm ready for slaughter in Nov. and no place to go with them as Coivid has shut down the local meat packers and the ones that are operating are booked up until Feb.
I am not set up to process my own, I relied on others to do that, but I will be damned if our critters go to waste and I know it is happening.
At 72 years old I am really not up to doing my own but I will get it done even if it takes me a while.
One way or another.

 

[Sixfivesavage]

That is all just personal opinion. Many would disagree, but few are coming up with solutions. Stuffing them into feed lot is not very good treatment. Walking around in knee deep shit isn't either. The safety and quality is a hotly debated topic these days.

Do you have first hand knowledge or experience with animals "stuffed in a feedlot" or "walking around in knee deep shit"? I mean actually witnessed it first hand or had any experience in any animal ag at all? Are you familiar with dosage and withholding periods of antibiotics? Do you know the difference between gram positive and gram negative and the treatments?

 

[MarinePMI]

Hunters will get tags, and throw the meat away when they find out no one is available to butcher it.

We have always hung animals in the garage and butchered ourselves. Its pretty easy.

It's always amazed me how many people (hunters and non-hunters) do not know how to butcher an animal. Maybe because I worked in a restaurant that ordered it's meat only in primal cuts, or maybe because I always hunted, it just seems like a natural process....

 

[Charger442]

And in the mean time we have 3 critters on the farm ready for slaughter in Nov. and no place to go with them as Coivid has shut down the local meat packers and the ones that are operating are booked up until Feb.
I am not set up to process my own, I relied on others to do that, but I will be damned if our critters go to waste and I know it is happening.
At 72 years old I am really not up to doing my own but I will get it done even if it takes me a while.
One way or another.

its going to get really real here in about 4 months. if things arent back to somewhat normal with feedlots and packers buying their usual allotment, things are going to get really rough.

most everyone is grazing their cattle through the summer, ive got 20 steers and heifer calves that need to be sold at auction by September. for those that dont know, thats usually anywhere from $15k payday to $18k. there are a lot of people who are going to be in this same boat. if they cant go to auciton, im not sure what can be done.

 

[Rthur]

It's always amazed me how many people (hunters and non-hunters) do not know how to butcher an animal. Maybe because I worked in a restaurant that ordered it's meat only in primal cuts, or maybe because I always hunted, it just seems like a natural process....

If you can clean a rabbit...
Hanging a beef or elk on nails is a bit hard though.

R

 

[Charger442]

It's always amazed me how many people (hunters and non-hunters) do not know how to butcher an animal. Maybe because I worked in a restaurant that ordered it's meat only in primal cuts, or maybe because I always hunted, it just seems like a natural process....

being a hunter and processing a deer is much different than processing a 1200 lb butchered steer. the cuts are different and to do it properly a good band saw is called for.

i butcher and process my own 4h/FFA hogs and its not like butchering a deer. most people who "process" their own wild hogs dont know how to cut their own porkchops, etc.