how to make a living raising a beef farm

[Duffster]

"If you cross State lines when selling your processed product this will enter the Federal arena".

Do you realize that is not necessarily the case anymore?

 

[Combustix]

Combustix,

Agreed completely...

$2.50 is a great deal! Do you buy the whole cow?

I am pretty seriously looking into starting a beef operation such as you describe. myself with another TBN'r.

Thanks,
David

We buy a half, and we get first dibs on the liver, kidney and heart. It takes a little longer to finish the cow off, but way better IMO. They do all organic though they are not certified, as to many hoops, but they follow all the guidelines, and fill a niche market. a half generally runs me $800-$900 so that's pretty good money for a cow that eats nothing but grass, at no costs to them other than land taxes. They have a waiting list for beef.

Seems all the farmers in the valley are going organic and filling a niche. With Seattle an hour or so away, they get much better prices than they would if they just raised regular crops. Even the hay guys are doing this as well.

 

[creekbend]

I don't see why any of this would be a problem. That is exactly what our local butcher does for several producers selling cuts of beef as well as selling whole, half or quarters of beef directly to the customers.

The laws have changed somewhat recently that has changed the need for federal USDA inspection on interstate sales as well. It's not nearly as big of deal as it used to be.

I am inquisitive in regards to your post. Which party kills the animals for selling to the public? Does your local butcher perform this task? Does the butcher work in a grocery store chain;etc, or does he have his own custom packing facilities? My post was referring to a local butcher, such as a meat cutter or a butcher that is an employee in a local meat department such as those that are in grocery stores. We have a business in our County that sells retail beef as you previously described, but we call these outlets Custom Packing facilities.These are equipped to fully process the animal from start to finish. Perhaps the confusion is caused by the variations in both the "denotation" and "connotation" of the word "Butcher"? Thanks for listening.

 

[Duffster]

I am inquisitive in regards to your post. Which party kills the animals for selling to the public? Does your local butcher perform this task? Does the butcher work in a grocery store chain;etc, or does he have his own custom packing facilities? My post was referring to a local butcher, such as a meat cutter or a butcher that is an employee in a local meat department such as those that are in grocery stores. We have a business in our County that sells retail beef as you previously described, but we call these outlets Custom Packing facilities.These are equipped to fully process the animal from start to finish. Perhaps the confusion is caused by the variations in both the "denotation" and "connotation" of the word "Butcher"? Thanks for listening.

I have never considered the guy that works the meat counter at a grocery store to be a butcher.

So yes what I was referring to is what you would call a "custom packing facility".

 

[creekbend]

Do you realize that is not necessarily the case anymore?

NOFA Interstate Council: Organic Food Safety - Regulatory Requirements Please go to section 111 Regulating Farm-Direct Food Sales. Thanks for your patience.

 

[Duffster]

NOFA Interstate Council: Organic Food Safety - Regulatory Requirements Please go to section 111 Regulating Farm-Direct Food Sales. Thanks for your patience.

The laws about needing federal inspection changed with the '08 farm bill. I doubt that article could have taken that into account.

 

[creekbend]

The laws about needing federal inspection changed with the '08 farm bill. I doubt that article could have taken that into account.

I am not familiar with all the statutes and regulations that were included in the 08 Farm Bill. Sincere thanks for posting.

 

[creekbend]

I have never considered the guy that works the meat counter at a grocery store to be a butcher.

So yes what I was referring to is what you would call a "custom packing facility".

How to Become a Butcher | eHow.com It mainly depends in which region of this great Country one lives. One of the greatest assets of this Nation is the diversity that is common among its' Citizens and the learning experience we all can derive from a discussion involving the various topics that we encounter in our everyday lives. I thoroughly enjoy the discussions here on TBN. Personally, I have gained much knowledge from being a member of TBN.

 

[forgeblast]

We buy a half, and we get first dibs on the liver, kidney and heart
What do you make with the hearts?
We eat liver at least once a week.

 

[creekbend]

We buy a half, and we get first dibs on the liver, kidney and heart
What do you make with the hearts?
We eat liver at least once a week.

Beef heart is not organ meat. It is the purest cut of muscle, just like steaks, except there is little fat, no gristle and doesn't have a definite grain which means it is tender no matter how you cut it. The gravy is very flavorful. We sometimes grind the whole heart into our ground beef. Braised beef heart is delicious. If you have never eaten beef tongue before, perhaps you might try it also. It tastes pretty much like pot roast. Just be sure that you skin the tongue by removing the outer layer. It also makes delicious leftovers for sandwiches. Just a thought.