Bringing Home the Bacon... Ooops sorry!

[Just Curious]

I have been told that 60-62% is a good figure for finished freezer bound steers....
Soooo... A few questions here... And I know that the answers to these questions are influenced by several variables, but in general, what do you look (hope) for?
A. Is this percentage an average figure or high end?
B. Is this percentage from live weight to hanging weight or hanging weight to box weight?
C. With an on the hoof 1300 lb steer, what would you expect to stick in the freezer?
D. Raising your own from the time that the calf drops to the time you put it in the freezer, what would expect to pay per pound?

 

[clifflem]

A BEEF CARCASS BREAKDOWN













With an average market (live or on hoof) weight of 1,150 lbs. and the average yield of 62.2%, the typical steer will produce a 715 lb. (dressed weight) carcass.
The dressed beef (or carcass) will yield approximately 569 lbs. of red meat and trim (take home meat-which includes the average weight of 27 lbs of variety meat: liver, heart, tongue, tripe, sweetbreads, and brains) and 146 lbs. of fat, bone and loss. This is roughly a yield of 80% from the dressed or hanging weight. The yield on the take home meat weight from the live weight of a steer is approximately 50%.
Here is a further detailed breakdown of the 569 lbs. of take home meat.

CHUCK ROUND
209.5 lbs. total, which is 29% of the 115.8 lbs. total, which is 22% of the
dressed/hanging/carcass weight: dressed/hanging/carcass weight:

Blade roasts and steaks 33.9 lbs. Top round 33.9 lbs.
Ground beef and stew meat 83.3 lbs. Bottom round 31.2 lbs.
Arm pot roast and steaks 35.5 lbs. Tip 16.8 lbs.
Cross rib pot roast 25.4 lbs. Rump 7.8 lbs.
Fat and bones 31.4 lbs. Ground beef 33.4 lbs.
Fat and bones 32.0 lbs.

THIN CUTS LOIN
134.6 lbs. total, which is 19% of the 115.7 lbs. total, which is 16% of the
dressed/hanging/carcass weight: dressed/hanging/carcass weight:

Flank steaks 3.6 lbs. Porterhouse steak 19.6 lbs.
Pastrami squares 2.9 lbs. T-bone steak 9.8 lbs.
Outside skirts 2.2 lbs. Strip steak 15.0 lbs.
Inside skirts 2.5 lbs. Sirloin steak 15.3 lbs.
Boneless brisket 16.0 lbs. Tenderloin steak 6.8 lbs.
Ground beef and stew meat 87.3 lbs. Ground beef/stew 22.7 lbs.
Fat and bones 20.1 lbs. Fat and bones 26.5 lbs.

RIB MISCELLANEOUS
66.6 lbs. total, which is 9% of the 32.7 lbs. total, which is 5% of the dressed/hanging/carcass weight: dressed/hanging/carcass weight:
Rib roast 23.9 lbs. Kidney & hanging tender 4.9 lbs.
Rib steak 9.2 lbs. Fat, suet & cutting loss 27.8 lbs.
Short ribs 8.6 lbs.
Ground beef and stew meat 16.5 lbs.
Fat and bones 8.4 lbs.
Found this on the Shorthorn website. It gives a pretty good breakdown of what to expect from a carcass.

 

[BAGTIC]

Are people still eating beef brains after the "Mad Cow' scare?

It seems to me that they would be relegated to offal nowdays.

 

[bward]

I have an old cookbook with quite a few brain recipes in it . ( gag) Also sweetbread recipes... ( calf thymus gland) ( gag) and tripe..... edible offal. Well they got the word right... it is awful.

Those parts were never wasted by our grandparents. I have a few meal nightmares when our parents were away and we were cared for and fed by my grandmother who seemed to want us to appreciate a thrifty lifestyle. If she were feeding me today I could lose a LOT of weight.

 

[mnmtranching]

We have a good export market to Eastern Europe for that kind of stuff.

 

[Mosho]

Thanks for the post. Very interesting and informative.