selling butcher beef

[DLD]

We used to do it quite a bit up to 10 calves a year but people got to where they wanted 1/4 and only rears so we would get hung with the fronts so we started going halves or wholes and people could not afford them so we just kinda quit ours were grain fed. I thought all meat was natural I took one to the locker the other day for me and dad if he dont hang a 1000# carcass I will be disappointed probably charge dad around $1.30 for his half see what he weighs out and what cattle are when we pick them up

The locker plant we use will split a half into two even quarters, but the cutting order has to be the same for both quarters.  Anymore, we just tell people who want a quarter that they don't have a choice on cutting orders - hasn't been a problem so far...

Some of you have mentioned selling packages ( I'm assuming you mean like 10# or 20# of assorted cuts).  We've thought about that, as we've had several requests for it, but we always wondered about the legalities of it.  Do those of you that do it this way have to have anything special like permits, inspections, etc...?

 

[cattlejunky]

We sell ours for $1.25 live weight (Indiana) we haul it to the butcher and the customer pays the processing fee .  We processed 14 calves last year.  We also sell by the piece for the folks that can't afford  1/4 or a 1/2.  If you have your animal processed at a state inspected facility you can sell by the piece also.
I also sell to locally owned convenicence stores.  We do not promote ours a organic, but we do state that it is hormone and antibiotic free.
Another selling point is it is free of dyes, preservatives, and fillers.  So you are getting more meat for the money.

 

[CAB]

  Elbee, I like your sample formula. I do have to ask you, have you weighed very many of the final lbs. of meat? By that I mean the final lbs of meat that the customer takes home? In our case, usually the best that we can get from rail to package is 55/56%. We have had one slightly under 50%. I have to question 70%. In this light as far a a profit for the packers, cuttability is FAR more important than yield.
  There is no question of legality if you are having the beef inspected. You can sell anywhere if the meat is federally inspected & you can sell anywhere within your own state if the meat is state inspected in your own state. If you make bundles that consist of 1/3 each, steaks/rsts/ground beef, this will make whole carcasses flow from our experience.

 

[farwest]

I'm gonna have to ask for a recess over the weeekend and inquire on this federal and state inspection in Nebraska.  Their is some hang up being able to sell anything less than a quarter.  I will use a lifeline to phone my  processor on monday, closed on friday's.

 

[box6rranch]

Over the years we've always gotten 2.50 per pd live weight for my daughter's fair steers. This year we had a really tough time getting a steer sold. I think it's the economy. Hard to come up with that much money at one time. Finally got him sold to four different people for about 1.25 per pd. Our butcher does what's called "Rinse and Chill" method. They inject a chilled isotonic solution containing dilute concentrations of approved common substrates (sugars and salts) through the carcass. It improves sanitation, meat quality, palatability and appearance while reducing cholesterol. The government approved process reduces pH and internal temperature and cleans out undesirable fluids more effectively than traditional methods. There are two websites that tell you more about the process if you are interested www.mpscinc.com and www.beefdirect2u.com

 

[simtal]

Has there been a new story or episode of Oprah lately that brought this subject to the limelight?

I've heard more and had more requests for natural beef (from non-ag people looking for a hook up) in the past month than I've seen in the past five years.

Well, she is the best snake oil salesman around....

 

[CAB]

 Jamie, I do know that Ne. is a Federally inspected only state. By that I mean they do not have State inspection & in my opinion it is smart. Iowa has both. Just more red tape & stupid. State inspection has to meet Fed requirements, but if you have Fed program, they have to have their own amenities, i.e. more BS. If what you are saying is so, I think that is BS. B/C think about the stores selling one piece of anything that you want with the same inspection policy. JMO. Ck it out for us please when you have a chance. I know that you are very busy preparing for your sale. Good Luck. Hope you have a great sale Jamie. Brent

 

[cattlejunky]

Our processor has state inspector onsite everyday.  That inspector oversees the animal from the time it walks into the door.  This allows us to sell by the piece.  To sell out of state it would have to be federally inspected.  We have other processing plants around that are only state inspected at least once a year.  They are allowed to sell whole, halves, or quarters only.  When I say state inspected I am not talking about our farm.

In Indiana if you use a processing plant with a State Inspector on site and each package has the State Of Indiana Board of Animal Health seal you can sell anywhere in the state by the package.

 

[knabe]

                           Processing                            #756 x $.45  =                                   +  $  340              

out here, processing is $.65, with an additional $0.15 for shrink wrap.  haven't noticed any break on not doing hamburger and just doing cubes with a couple of my customers prefer as they make their own grind.  my sister does as well.  i've heard that hamburger is the most expensive part of the process, and most prone to contamination.

 

[kanshow]

Nicole,  Do you store your cuts at your place or do you have freezer space rented at the locker?  I imagine laws vary from state to state but wonder if the inspection becomes void after the meat would leave the state inspected locker..    I need to check our state laws because we could sell a lot of beef this way.

 

[ELBEE]

  Elbee, I like your sample formula. I do have to ask you, have you weighed very many of the final lbs. of meat? By that I mean the final lbs of meat that the customer takes home? In our case, usually the best that we can get from rail to package is 55/56%. We have had one slightly under 50%. I have to question 70%. In this light as far a a profit for the packers, cuttability is FAR more important than yield.
  There is no question of legality if you are having the beef inspected. You can sell anywhere if the meat is federally inspected & you can sell anywhere within your own state if the meat is state inspected in your own state. If you make bundles that consist of 1/3 each, steaks/rsts/ground beef, this will make whole carcasses flow from our experience.

I'm glad that you questioned the percentages! The answer is, yes, all carcasses are weighed. Now for a pitch for our gentics. I have never had a "baby beef" (12-18 months) yield that low, and most are close to 50% live to freezer ratio. Most yield close to 70% live to rail ratio. But remember I take these animals off feed and water at least 12 hours prior to kill.

The plant owner just chuckles when a customer asks him to trim to 90% lean. He says "O.K., no problem."

I've never had a customer complain about a 15 inch Ribeye either.

Kansas requires a retailers license to sell processed beef. Although many producers don't worry about it. I'm not going to take the chance. We've split carcasses up to 8 ways, but you must have customers that cooperate.

Now you'all know why I'm smokin' mad  (argue) after seein' my roan\red and white calves take a 10 dollar discount a the local auction house!  

 

[CAB]

  Elbee, just to be sure that we are on the same page here, all of our carcasses are weighed, but what I am asking, is do you weigh all of the meat after it is packaged? I have seen cattle  that will dress 70% live wt. to rail, but I have yet to see or have one come close to 70% from rail to package. This is more important than the live to rail % simply B/C every time you make the # smaller it becomes more prevalent in the math itself.

example= 1300 lb steer x 63% = 819lbs on the rail x 70% = 573.3 lbs of packaged meat to take home.

1300 lb steer x 63% = 819 lbs on the rail x 55% = 450 45 lbs. There is what I mean about cutability being way more important than dressing %. Plug in some different #s for the dressing % and you'll see that it won't change the total outcome very much. That's why when the packers stand there and want you to take a shrink and whine about dressing % I say BS. It's also why, when we start to talk about making cattle "DEEPER", be careful not to hurt cutability along with it. We have weighed a lot of cattle over the years, rail to package. Like I said B4 55% is about as good as I can get. We start killing calves @ 12 months so I think that you and i are feeding similar fed cattle. SH cattle are very much under estimated as far as cutability and grade IMO.  Elbee, just wanting to make sure that we are the same page, not wanting to argue and I will do some more research.

 

[CAB]

  Elbee, I just got off the ph with  a very good beef specialist here in SW Iowa. The info that he gave me was collected from cattle that were associated with the Clay Reseach Center in Ne.I will have to ck out my figures more closely. He said using a formula that they call the "Closely trimmed retail product", that the average was 64% from rail to over the counter,and that the range was 55 to 70% and that the REA/100lbs of carcass weight has quite a bit to do with this figure. The ave. for REA/100lbs was 1.57. heifers=.05 more than steers. This figure has changed, 0 in the last 30 years. I stand corrected & hope that you don't think that I was trying to question you directly. I guess that I should have talked to the specialist 1st. Sorry, Brent

 

[farwest]

I've weighed alot of th take home meat from the locker, time and time again coms up real close to 65% of what they weighed him at on the rail.  Always do that to see if i'm getting the old meat cutters thumb on the scale so to speak, (lol)

 

[ELBEE]

CAB, I humbly thank you from the bottom of my heart for saying more in one paragraph to promote my program than I could say in a hundred speeches. Yes, I am very aware of the stats out of MARC, and believe me there is allot more.

                                                            "Some men choose to remain ignorant forever!"
                                                                                           

 

[CAB]

Thank You Elbee. You know I think that you have a great program & great cattle. Truly a breeder of cattle that can & will change cattle herds. Sincerely, Brent

 

[ELBEE]

Just received data on a Shorthorn carcass that made 50% live to freezer. Point of interest is Loineye of 19.4 on an animal under 1300#. Was not from my herd, but from a well known breeder who's lines go back to W O Dividend 3J. What'd your Iowa State guy say about Loineye? Guess we'll have to have those packers make bigger boxes! Since they can't fit anything over 11 inches into the ones they have now. Maybe if we can achieve 22 inches they could just cut those loins in two! I know how hard it is for our packers to make any money, just want to help them out!

                                                                                                        ;D

 

[CAB]

  Lee, he said that REA/100lbs of carcass weight was very relevant in relationship to cutability. He said that the ave. REA/100lbs carcass weight had not changed as far as ave. was concerned in slightly over 30 years, with that figure being 1.57 inches/100lbs. Market heifers averaging .05 sq.inches more than market steers per 100 wt. Do you have the carcass wt. of the particular calf that you are referencing? I am curious to know the REA/100. He also said that calves that have those larger REAs seem to have larger rounds in them as well. He never said this per say, but I did get the feeling that he was referring to lets say Limi/Char/ higher cutability type cattle in general. I mentioned that I was talking about SH cattle and did mention that I also thought that SH cattle were not getting due as far as good carcass cattle and he did refer to a SH cattle breeder in our area that had very good carcass cattle. Sorry to all for some of repetitiveness. Brent

 

[ELBEE]

2.13  REA\100 lbs. carcass wt.. Some may have categorized this animal as double muscled. What ever that means????

Then, of course, there is the issue of fertility in propagating these type!

 

[CAB]

Lee, Olsun and I visited last evening for a short while. He & his brother used to compete in quite a few carcass contests and said that they had kinda figured out how to compete & did, but they also noticed that fertility did drop off somewhat rapidly when trying to produce this type of higher cutting carcasses. Hope that Earl will join in. Interesting. Brent