Regulations bring some unique characteristics to how we sell our beef.  For us to sell directly to you, the beef must be purchased before the steer is butchered.  Buying beef “on the hoof” can be a little challenging to understand.  It all starts with weight.  A live steer weighs 1,000-1,500 pounds.  After it is harvested, the weight is called a “hanging weight” or carcass weight.  Finally, when it is butchered, bones, excess fat, etc., are removed, creating a “cut” weight. The “cut weight” on a cow is typically about 36% of the live weight. So, from a 1,200lb steer, you would get roughly 432lbs of meat (give or take).

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When one of our Galloway steers is ready to be harvested, we post on social media and our website that we have beef available.  You can order the whole steer, half of the steer, or a quarter.  Because these orders need to be placed before the steer is harvested, exact weights and amounts of different cuts of meat can’t be known, so we do our best to price based on what we think the yield from that particular steer will be. Our prices currently are $3,500 for a whole steer, $1,750 for half, and $875 for a quarter. This is to cover the meat and cost of butchering.

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Once a steer has been fully ordered and paid for, we can then schedule to have it harvested.  Typically, this is 2-3 weeks after the whole cow has been sold.  Once harvested, it needs to hang and age before being cut, so picking up your order or having it delivered happens about 4-6 weeks after your order is placed.  If you are local, you can pick up your order directly from the butcher if you would like.  If you are in the region and we might already be headed in your direction, we can arrange to deliver to you, though the timeline may be extended somewhat.  No matter the option you choose, we will be in contact with you to coordinate the receiving of your beef.  The job of taking care of our steer isn’t over until it’s delivered to your kitchen.