Details for Ordering Whole or Half Beef

One of the advantages of buying by half or whole beef is that you call the butcher and tell them exactly how you want your beef, and what cuts you want. You can have your steaks cut the thickness you desire, order more hamburger instead of some cuts – it’s completely a custom order. The butcher will tell you what cuts come off a half beef and help you with the decision process.

We take our steers to Winchester Meat Locker in Winchester, Kansas for butchering. You will pick up your meat from the butcher after it is cut, shrink-wrapped, and frozen.

The butcher fee for a cow is $55.00 for whole and $28.00 for a half. Additionally, there is 60 cent/lb processing fee for the hanging weight. The hanging weight is the dead weight minus the head, skin, and innards. Our whole beef price is listed here and is in addition to the butcher rate per pound and the butcher fee. Prices subject to change without notice.

We require a non-refundable deposit on half and whole beeves. Once this fee is received, we will reserve your half or whole beef. Half beef non-refundable deposit is $250.00, and a whole beef non-refundable deposit is $500.00.

Rule of thumb for freezer space: 35 lbs. of meat requires 1 cubic feet of freezer space, which is about the size of a milk crate.

An average hanging weight for a half steer is 300-400 lbs. There is a loss of approximately 30-40% from the hanging weight to the amount you will place in your freezer, depending on how many pounds of hamburger and other cuts are ordered. Here is a sampling of the cuts you can receive from a half steer. All cuts are not listed and all numbers are approximate:

• 50 pounds hamburger
• Round steak (can also be used for jerky or ground into hamburger)
• Chuck, arm, rump and sirloin roasts
• Brisket
• KC strip, fillets, or T-bones, sirloin and rib eye steaks
• Soup bones – optional
• The liver, heart, and tail – optional