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Started By
Message
Buying sides of beef
Posted on 10/2/14 at 3:18 pm
Posted on 10/2/14 at 3:18 pm
Some friends of ours have done this in the past, buying a half or quarter of a cow. My wife was visiting her today, and brought it up because we've thought about ways to stretch the dollars now that she is staying at home with the kids. Obviously there would be some upfront costs like buying a deep freeze and perhaps a generator for it in case of power outages. She told us that it was around $1,100 the last time they bought a half and it got them around 200 lbs of meat. We were thinking about going in with them the next time they did this. So we're looking at a sizable outlay of cash upfront, but not having to buy beef at grocer's prices for the next year would be nice.
My questions are, what is the usual split on the cuts of meat? Rough estimate in pounds between ground, loin, steaks, etc. We typically go through about 5 lbs of ground beef per month, doing burgers, chili, spaghetti, tacos, etc. And it would be nice to have steaks available at any time. I've got plenty of space for the freezer in the basement too.
My questions are, what is the usual split on the cuts of meat? Rough estimate in pounds between ground, loin, steaks, etc. We typically go through about 5 lbs of ground beef per month, doing burgers, chili, spaghetti, tacos, etc. And it would be nice to have steaks available at any time. I've got plenty of space for the freezer in the basement too.
11
Posted on 10/2/14 at 3:23 pm to TU Rob
Im following along
and am interested in the answers.
Last i looked organic fed beef was expensive
and am interested in the answers.
Last i looked organic fed beef was expensive
Posted on 10/2/14 at 3:25 pm to TU Rob
you get your value from the steaks, not really the ground meat.
Posted on 10/2/14 at 3:26 pm to TU Rob
I really don't think a generator is needed unless you regularly lose power for 3-4 days or more...
Posted on 10/2/14 at 3:26 pm to TU Rob
quote:Meh, $5.50/lb isn't the greatest unless you are buying it strictly for steaks. Despite the ridiculous beef prices nowadays, you still get 80/20 for $3.99/lb
She told us that it was around $1,100 the last time they bought a half and it got them around 200 lbs of meat.
Posted on 10/2/14 at 3:34 pm to TigerTatorTots
Unless you are very disciplined, you will have some cuts you don't eat with the same frequency as the steaks and ground. If you do this you will overpay.
To benefit from this you need to know what you eat/like and be disciplined.
Its very likely that you can employ the same discipline and catch sales and buy the same quality mean for similar or cheaper prices from Sam's or other stores.
How much Neck Roast and stew meat are you going to eat? Bone in roasts? Flank steak? Short ribs?
You gonna ask for the bones and make stock?
My family used to kill one of our own every year and divide it between 3 families.
Final question. Is this something you began researching on your own because you were interested, or a "good idea" somebody else had/mentioned that you are suddenly interested in?
To benefit from this you need to know what you eat/like and be disciplined.
Its very likely that you can employ the same discipline and catch sales and buy the same quality mean for similar or cheaper prices from Sam's or other stores.
How much Neck Roast and stew meat are you going to eat? Bone in roasts? Flank steak? Short ribs?
You gonna ask for the bones and make stock?
My family used to kill one of our own every year and divide it between 3 families.
Final question. Is this something you began researching on your own because you were interested, or a "good idea" somebody else had/mentioned that you are suddenly interested in?
Posted on 10/2/14 at 3:36 pm to TigerTatorTots
quote:
you get your value from the steaks, not really the ground meat.
quote:
Meh, $5.50/lb isn't the greatest unless you are buying it strictly for steaks. Despite the ridiculous beef prices nowadays, you still get 80/20 for $3.99/lb
Yeah, I just looked into a couple of places near here, and one was advertising $4.50 per pound. That's a little higher than ground beef prices but better than steaks.
quote:
I really don't think a generator is needed unless you regularly lose power for 3-4 days or more...
That's what I told my wife. I can't remember the last time we lost power for more than 1 day. And if it is at least 2/3 full and we don't open it then everything should be fine for a day or two. She's just concerned about losing several hundred dollars worth of food.
Posted on 10/2/14 at 3:41 pm to Huntinguy
quote:
How much Neck Roast and stew meat are you going to eat? Bone in roasts? Flank steak? Short ribs?
I like all of those.
quote:
Final question. Is this something you began researching on your own because you were interested, or a "good idea" somebody else had/mentioned that you are suddenly interested in?
We are just looking for ways to budget more effectively now that we're on one income. We already buy some things in bulk, but our fridge is an older side by side and we can't pack a lot of stuff in the freezer, so i've been thinking about buying a deep freeze for some time already. Seems like buying 1/4 of a cow would be in bulk and cut down on the monthly grocery bill. I don't mind paying the larger amount on the front end if it saves over the course of a year. We just happened to know someone who had done it in the past, because they asked us a couple of years ago if we were interested in going in with them on one. She had surgery last week, or maybe two weeks ago, and my wife went out to visit her and asked her about it while she was there. She visited with her a couple of hours and you know women will talk about anything under the sun.
Posted on 10/2/14 at 3:47 pm to TU Rob
Know your cuts and know what you like for sure. You'll always end up with soup bones at the end which are only good for long stewing. With beef prices the way they are you're better off just buying from the store. You'll overpay for ground but make it up on the steaks. Cows have 13 ribs so you'll get approx. 13 ribeyes for your side plus the loin steaks so probably another 6-10 depending on your thickness. ou'll get a lot of round and seven steaks if you choose those instead of ground.
Posted on 10/2/14 at 3:48 pm to MoreOrLes
quote:
Last i looked organic fed beef was expensive
Waste of money.
Posted on 10/2/14 at 3:51 pm to TU Rob
That doesn't seem like a bad price, feeder calves around here are averaging $3 a lb, so double that (50% yield loss) and meat could sell for $6 a lb as soon as the calves leave the stockyards. You will probably save a little bit, but cattle prices aren't going down any time soon and may even continue to rise (cheap corn and the continued shrinking of the US cattle herd). I don't think you'll need a generator, unless you lose power for several days on a regular basis. If you have land you could always buy a calf, feed it, get someone to butcher it (mobile butchers do exist) and sell the other half.
Posted on 10/2/14 at 3:58 pm to ZacAttack
Bear in mind that ethanol is on its way out, and grain prices are falling....with beef eventually to follow.
Posted on 10/2/14 at 4:04 pm to Huntinguy
Beef will stay high at least for another 3-5 years. The US herd has taken a major hit with droughts, blizzards, and aging farmers selling off while the prices are higher than a giraffe's arse. The population is the lowest since the 1950s and cows don't reproduce fast enough to end the trend soon.
This post was edited on 10/2/14 at 4:05 pm
Posted on 10/2/14 at 4:09 pm to pointdog33
True, obviously I'm more aligned with the grain side and haven't watched the beef side as closely since we sold out a few years ago. 
Posted on 10/2/14 at 4:13 pm to Huntinguy
quote:
sold out a few years ago.
Guys are dropping out left and right and culling their herds real hard right now the way the prices are.
Getting 1.25 a pound for a broke down old cow is absolutely nuts. Before I sold out of my herd I was getting .30 a pound for cull cows. These prices are crazy and makes me wish I had a herd to reap the benefits.
Posted on 10/2/14 at 4:47 pm to Huntinguy
quote:
Bear in mind that ethanol is on its way out, and grain prices are falling....with beef eventually to follow.
Actually no. Cheap corn is helping beef prices remain high. Feed lots can buy corn for cheap, they can afford to feed more calves, thereby increasing the demand for feeder calves. Like someone else said the US cattle herd is at the smallest its been in 60 years. Demand for beef has not shrunk to coincide with the loss of cow numbers. The feed lots are buying up all the cows they can, but the reduced number has generated more competition, thus more people bidding on fewer cows. This all leads to more demand for cows and higher prices of cows.
Posted on 10/2/14 at 6:14 pm to TU Rob
If you're trying to save that cash money, why don't you cut beef out? Beef is the most expensive meet. Replace it with chicken and pork and you'll do be fine fine. I hope that helps and don't forget bread beef is also the worstmeet for your health.
Posted on 10/2/14 at 6:48 pm to runningTiger
Boo this man
Posted on 10/2/14 at 7:07 pm to runningTiger
quote:
don't forget bread beef is also the worstmeet for your health.
im sure pork is just a great meat....not. chicken would be the healthiest but you can only eat so much chicken.
want to really save money go on a elk hunt and shoot a cow elk and get 500 lbs of meat for about 2-300 bucks max. well the trip would cost 2 people about 500 each but hell 2 full adult cow elk will provide plenty of meat and a great story.
Posted on 10/2/14 at 7:10 pm to burgeman
Beef cows are very expensive right now, the prices this summer for 2 in 1, bred heifers, were north of $2200.
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