Low Hanging Weight?

[kenny thomas]

1210 live weight 774 hanging = 63.9% very nice Bob

That is better than good I think.
Everyone thinks their beef should cut 60%. Unless it's really finished it may not. I have never seen one cut 65% much less 70%. And expecting 50% of live weight in packaged meat just doesn't happen.

 

[Bob-s]

Do you happen to know her age and number of days on feed?

She was 22 months on 03/15. I bought her from my neighbor Dec 30; he didn't want her. She was on some feed with him, not sure of details. She weighed 1000 lb. when I got her.

I put her on 12% feed that had 50% cracked corn in it. I worked in extra cracked corn, finally up to 1 bag feed with 1 bag corn, so 75% corn ration. I fed her (and 2 other smaller steers) as much as they would eat, about 80 lb. a day. Had free choice hay as well.

 

[Son of Butch]

My best guess is that the disappointment lies in unrealistic expectations of dressing percentage and a less than accurate method of attaining live weight.
Jmo

came across a table of usda averages - expectations
hanging wt 61.5% of lw - take home 67.5% of hw & 12.5% of take-h wt bone
dairy breeds h.w. 59.5%

 

[farmerjan]

I look at all the tables and averages... and after having several done year after year... I tell any customers that they will get approx 25% usable edible meat from an animal. If it weighs 1000 lbs, it will hang about 500 lbs and they will get about 250 lbs packaged meat. I always tell them that is the low end.... but it gives them something to figure on. Most of ours have some dairy in them so it is a little less than all beef breeds. That is with all boneless cuts... edible meat...... We usually wind up with around 30%+ edible meat compared to live weight. I had one customer that actually took and weighed each package and then complained about the return on the hanging weight... I took them back their check and took back the meat and said that was fine. They were insisting that the yield should be 67%.... going by the charts... I tried to explain the difference in the partly dairy animals... and they LOVED the flavor of the couple of steaks and ground beef I gave them to try....and after finding out that they harassed the butcher several times about different types of cuts.... I just said, no problem, I guaranteed this beef, I will bring you back your money and take back the beef.
We always give a prospective customer a pkg of steaks and ground beef to try... to make sure they will like the taste since it tastes different than an animal on a feedlot ration....ours are 90% grassfed/finished... with only a little corn silage and free choice hay.... Have had 99% very happy satisfied customers and many back again for more.... have one now that was so happy with the 1/2 that they want a whole beef... it hasn't been 6 months since they got the half....

 

[Bob-s]

I had a steer that I sold to a processor. He weighed 1200lbs a week before he went. They killed him the next morning and they said his hanging weight was 644lbs. I usually use 60-62.5% of live weight to estimate hanging. That was 54%. I questioned them and all they could talk about was their scales are checked every week, mine aren't certified, etc., etc. Not once did they even speak to a possible error on their part. They said I could come and watch my next one be killed and weighed, I said I would.

As a test, I took two other steers I was feeding and weighed them on my scales and then took them to the vet and had them weighed. I was within 1-2% on my scale, heavy on mine.

A wrote on this thread about a heifer that weighed 1210lbs and hung at 774 by another processor (63.9%). So there was a big difference between the two animals' hanging weight. The other difference is I was paying them processing on the heavier weight and being paid on the lighter one. Funny how that worked out.

Any observations? What would explain the hanging weight differences in two animals that weighed almost the same? Heavy trim? Buying one and selling the other is what I came up with? Thanks for any comments.

 

[Son of Butch]

I had a steer that I sold to a processor. So there was a big difference between the two animals' hanging weight. The difference is I was paying them processing on the heavier weight and being paid on the lighter one.

Any observations? What would explain the hanging weight differences in two animals.

My guess is the purchasing processor removed the kidneys and internal fat, paying you strictly on the carcass weight at processing.
Did he weigh the carcass immediately or allow the carcass to shrink for a day or overnight before weighing?

 

[50/50Farms]

36% of live weight for deboned meat has been plus or minus only a tiny bit for me, usually spot on, and with almost no variation across species.

 

[Bob-s]

Son of Butch;
Makes sense, but would that account for over a hundred pounds? Weighed the same day, hours after killed. I saw it hanging the day after and all the outside fat was intact, didn't think to look on the inside of the halves.

It is all water under the bridge. I'm just trying to see if I am overlooking something obvious. Been doing this a while but not that much experience. Mostly, a steer every year or two to provide my brothers some beef as a thank you for all they do to help me. Trying to crank it up a bit more and trying to learn all I can.

 

[Son of Butch]

Son of Butch;
Makes sense, but would that account for over a hundred pounds?

No, it could be significant, but it would not be 100 pounds.

 

[Bob-s]

On the other hand, if the other processor weighed all the organs, etc. that could account for their extra weight. I asked for the cheek meat, maybe they weighed the entire head instead of just the extracted cheek meat? You never know what goes on behind the curtain.

 

[wbvs58]

No bulls on the place. No neighbors with bulls. I sure didn't do AI. Maybe Immaculate?

Lots of those around.

Ken