Price Check Please

[Kbug]

Are these decent prices? I'm not sure how accurate the prices are, but the pork spare ribs are priced right around where I just purchased them for. I've just pulled out the list of items I'm most interested in.

Beef:

Side - $2.69/lb
Hindquarter - $3.19/lb
Forequarter - $2.19/lb
Sliced Liver - $1.19/lb
Beef head - $15/each

Lamb Carcass - $3.59/lb

Pork:

Trim - $1.49/lb
Head - $.59/lb

So, if these were accurate, which would be the best deal?

Kbug

[DaneMama]

Where are you located? What source is this for meat?

The only affordable beef for us to order in bulk were beef ribs (more of a treat than a meal) as well as beef heart which was our #1 source for boneless red meat when we lived in Denver. Ribs were $1ish per pound and beef heart was ~$.50-1 per pound. Have you asked about these two things?

As far as beef heads, I would ask the average weight per head as well as ask if they are stripped or still completely intact when you buy them.

What comes on the lamb carcass? How much meat will still be on there?

If it comes from a butcher or meat processor there wont be much meat left on there at all. So, you'd be buying mostly bones for over $3 per pound...NOT a good deal.

Pork trim is guaranteed to be mostly fat and skin...not much meat and at that price, not a good deal at all.

The pork head might be the only good deal I see on this list...as long as the head isn't stripped at all before you buy it. Heads typically have lots of meat on them.

[Kbug]

Natalie,

Its from Texas A&M's meat center. The animals are bred/raised by A&M and slaughtered by A&M as a way to provide independent funding for their animal science/meat science programs. They are not a true commercial meat packer. I haven't asked any questions yet, mostly because of the type of operation they are, I wasn't sure how flexible or even how competitive they'd be.

Buying lamb carcass is like buying a side or quarter of beef not just the scrap/bones. You get the whole carcass and can get it cut to order.

As far as the pork trim, I can't be sure without asking, but I think its meat. They list it under the meat cuts of pork and then under "variety meats" they have a separate listing for skin and fat.

Kbug

[DaneMama]

I'd look into it then. Those prices are higher than I would pay for most things as we try to keep our cost under $1 per pound for meat. I'm sure you could find meat that is less expensive elsewhere...

Do you know if A&M raises their animals without hormones or antibiotics? Are they grain fed or grass fed or both? These are questions that I would also want answered.