How much does it cost?

When you buy a custom-processed beef, you are paying the producer for the animal on the hoof, and the butcher for the processing. We charge $2.50/lb. live weight, and typically at slaughter, cattle are weighing around 1000lbs. That means you’ll pay us a total of $2,500. Butcher fees vary, but are usually about $0.60/lb. hanging weight, which would come to about $400 for the processing.

How much meat will I get?

This depends heavily on the weight and quality of the animal to be butchered. At Smiling Bovine Ranch, all of our butcher animals are between 1-3 years old, weighing approximately 1000lbs. On average, you will lose about 30-40% of the live weight during the slaughter process (think hide, internal organs, blood), and then another 10-20% of the live weight during the butcher process (think fat, bones, and cartilage). If you get a lot of ground beef, this number will be higher because you’re losing all the bones. If you get a lot of bone-in cuts, this number will be lower because you’re keeping more bones.

Whole: 300-400lbs of beef cuts, including ground beef, roasts, steaks, etc.

Half: 150-200lbs of beef cuts, including ground beef, roasts, steaks, etc.

Quarter: 75-100lbs of beef cuts, including ground beef, roasts, steaks, etc.

How much freezer space do I need?

This will depend a little bit on the cuts that you choose, but on average:

Whole: 22 cubic feet

Half: 8 cubic feet

Quarter: 5 cubic feet

Do I get to pick what cuts of beef I receive?

For the most part, you get to customize your beef purchase to fit your family’s needs. Depending on the amount of beef you’re purchasing, you may a have a little more or less control over cuts.

You can always call the processing plant of your choice (see some local ones that we’ve used before here) for advice, but I like to receive as many steaks as I can, a few roasts, and a whole bunch of ground beef.

For half or whole beef, you get all the say in what cuts you receive. Most butcher shops require each half to be processed the same, so for a quarter, you’ll need to agree with at least one other person.

One off parts like tongue, oxtail, and heart are on a first-come first-serve basis.

What about the bones and tallow?

You can always ask the butcher to save the bones and fat for you to take home! If you have the time and patience, beef bones make excellent broth, and tallow is great for cooking, candles, and soap!

Is it grass-fed or grain-fed?

From the day our calves are born, they are raised out on pasture. Generally, they have acres to roam at any given time. But we are also interested in producing the highest-quality beef most efficiently for ourselves and our consumers. Which is why, when the calves are weaned, they are also supplemented with grain until the time of slaughter. This helps them pack on the muscle and marbling quickly, keeping your beef tender and flavorful!