$4.50/Pound – Hanging Weight plus Processing

Whole Cow – $3,400.00 - $4,600.00

½ Cow - $1,700.00 - $2,300.00

¼ Cow - $850.00 - $1,150.00

Price depends on hanging weight of animal

 CATTLE WEIGHTS

What is the difference between “hanging weight” and just plain “weight”?

When it comes to beef weights, there are 3 distinctions to be aware of:

• Live weight. This is what the animal weighed when it was alive on the hoof. (for us, our animals come off our grass weighing around 1300 pounds)
• Hanging weight. This is the weight that the butcher gives us after hide, organs and legs have been removed. The hanging weight is usually about 60% of the live weight. (1300 lb. animal would have an estimated hanging weight of 780 lbs.)
• Take-home weight. This is the weight of the meat that each customer will bring home. This weight is usually about 60-65% of the hanging weight. For a 195 lb. quarter share the final weight would be approx. 117-127 pounds.

NOTE: The weight is lost in two ways.  About 4% is water weight lost during the 21-day
period that the carcass is hung (or “cured”). Then about another 30-35% is lost during the cutting process.  This amount varies based on two factors – one is the amount of fat in the meat, and the other is the cuts that a customer requests.  Higher fat means more loss.  (Our grass-fed beef animals tend to be lower fat, so the loss tends to be closer to 35%.)  Also, the more boneless cuts requested by the customer, the lower the final weight. (Note that the lower weight doesn’t mean that you are receiving less
meat – rather, you are receiving fewer bones).

When purchasing a cow from us you will pay us for the cow and then choose the processor of your choice.  If you do not have a preference, we can choose one for you.  It will be your responsibility to fill out a cut sheet with the processor and pay and pick up from them for processing and packaging your beef.  The approximate cost of processing is .89¢/Lb. Hanging Weight.

E-mail us at contact@5lsfarm.com if you are interested