Selling halves and quarters from a heifer

[Alan]

I've been reading the thread and doing a search on this board about locker beef some of you folks sell. Most or all of you talk about selling steers to you customers for freezer beef. I'm curious to how many of your will sell a quarter, half or whole heifer for freezer beef? If not, why not? I've sent many heifers through the auction yard, I would think some went to the feed lots. I do realize the weight gain would be less than a steer over the same period of time, would the only other problem be in customer education, the customer thinking about of eating a girl cow?

Thanks,
Alan

 

[Susie David]

They all look the same when they are upside down and naked...
The heifers that turn up open get moved in with the steers and get a place in the production schedule.
One of the best carcasses that we had this summer was a three year old grass fed Herf that turned up open...great flavor and nice yellow fat.
Dave Mc

 

[Alan]

They all look the same when they are upside down and naked...
The heifers that turn up open get moved in with the steers and get a place in the production schedule.
One of the best carcasses that we had this summer was a three year old grass fed Herf that turned up open...great flavor and nice yellow fat.
Dave Mc

Had this 3 yr old calved once, or was she a heifer Open at 2 yrs old and about a year in the "production schedule". Thanks Dave.

Alan

 

[Jogeephus]

I raise a few for family and friends and they don't care what sex it is just so long as its good. The best meat I've fed out so far has been from a heifer. She went on the top end of prime and you could cut her with a spoon. Folks that picked her out were very pleased. Personally, I can't tell a difference other than it doesn't take as much feed to finish a heifer. I'm thinking I'm missing an oppurtunity by not selling all the steers and just feeding out heifers.

 

[S&S Farms]

Alan

If you can sell two halves and a quarter from a heifer then I would always use heifers

Have fed out both customers dont care as long as the meat is good. we sell the baldies and feed out the straights and sell for a premium over the market price. We dont take a discount for not being black hided.

Jeff

 

[angie1]

I didn't realize anyone took a discount for not being black hided. Thats too bad.

We have eaten and sold meat from free martins and open heifers. Meat is great! If it wasn't, we would eat it ourselves rather than sell it.

 

[grannysoo]

They all look the same when they are upside down and naked...

True! And they all taste great when on the table...

 

[MrBilly]

Last year we sold several heifers. At the end of the season we calculated the cost per pound of retail product people received for the steers and for the heifers. The heifer's cost was 10% more than that of the steers. We returned 10% of the cost to the customers.

I don't have the data at hand, but this means to me the yield was lower, but as others have said some of the best meat, prime, has come from heifers.

Billy

 

[shorty]

We butchered hiefers the last two years , they were both from the same cow, we kept half and sold half to a friend , it was real good both times, this year I didn't keep any hiefers to feed I have all steers , there is a steer from the same cow we might keep that one for our self. The only downfall of feeding hiefers is that they don't gain quite as good as steers. last year we had 2 steers that were born about the same time as the hiefer ,the steers dressed 850 and 830 , and the hiefer dressed 720, the hiefer was a simm-red angus , the steers were straight simm and simm-shorthorn.

 

[HEREFORD ROADHOG]

I raise a few for family and friends and they don't care what sex it is just so long as its good. The best meat I've fed out so far has been from a heifer. She went on the top end of prime and you could cut her with a spoon. Folks that picked her out were very pleased. Personally, I can't tell a difference other than it doesn't take as much feed to finish a heifer. I'm thinking I'm missing an oppurtunity by not selling all the steers and just feeding out heifers.

the only reason you might think it takes less feed is because heifers usuallly finish at a smaller wt. than steers. steers gain better than heifers.

 

[Jogeephus]

I raise a few for family and friends and they don't care what sex it is just so long as its good. The best meat I've fed out so far has been from a heifer. She went on the top end of prime and you could cut her with a spoon. Folks that picked her out were very pleased. Personally, I can't tell a difference other than it doesn't take as much feed to finish a heifer. I'm thinking I'm missing an oppurtunity by not selling all the steers and just feeding out heifers.

the only reason you might think it takes less feed is because heifers usuallly finish at a smaller wt. than steers. steers gain better than heifers.

Exactly. The sooner I can get the animal finished the better since I put most of the weight on the animal with forages and am only looking at finishing the animal on grain. The less time in the pen the better.

 

[somn]

Last year we sold several heifers. At the end of the season we calculated the cost per pound of retail product people received for the steers and for the heifers. The heifer's cost was 10% more than that of the steers. We returned 10% of the cost to the customers.

I don't have the data at hand, but this means to me the yield was lower, but as others have said some of the best meat, prime, has come from heifers.

Billy

That lower yield thing I keep hearing about doesn't show here. Heifers have been winning for over 2 weeks in respect to dressing %. Now the boxed beef yield is usually lower on a heifer. I assume that is what you meen when you say retail product.

 

[backhoeboogie]

I don't sell quarters. If someone doesn't have enough nickels to buy a half, they can find someone to split a half with on their own.

I had a single mom last year who couldn't buy a half. She talked her parents into splitting a half. The parents wound up buying a whole, and giving her a half. Just be positive and encouraging when dealing with the public.

 

[MrBilly]

Last year we sold several heifers. At the end of the season we calculated the cost per pound of retail product people received for the steers and for the heifers. The heifer's cost was 10% more than that of the steers. We returned 10% of the cost to the customers.

I don't have the data at hand, but this means to me the yield was lower, but as others have said some of the best meat, prime, has come from heifers.

Billy

That lower yield thing I keep hearing about doesn't show here. Heifers have been winning for over 2 weeks in respect to dressing %. Now the boxed beef yield is usually lower on a heifer. I assume that is what you meen when you say retail product.

yes retail product is the weight of meat, and in our case it is boneless product only.

Billy

 

[Alan]

Last year we sold several heifers. At the end of the season we calculated the cost per pound of retail product people received for the steers and for the heifers. The heifer's cost was 10% more than that of the steers. We returned 10% of the cost to the customers.

I don't have the data at hand, but this means to me the yield was lower, but as others have said some of the best meat, prime, has come from heifers.

Billy

Thanks this is pretty much what I was asking. It seems I have a hard time communicating my thoughts at times. I was wondering if a heifer smaller yeild was enough to warrant not feeding one up.

Thanks,
Alan

 

[Alan]

I don't sell quarters. If someone doesn't have enough nickels to buy a half, they can find someone to split a half with on their own.

I had a single mom last year who couldn't buy a half. She talked her parents into splitting a half. The parents wound up buying a whole, and giving her a half. Just be positive and encouraging when dealing with the public.

Backhoe,

Would you mind telling me your reason for not selling quarters or ,I assume you mean half halves also. Please pm me if you don't want to post it in here. I have worked in retail or retail type business for 30+ years. I'm assuming it has somthing to do with the hassle of dealing with people, but please let me know your thoughts on what the problems is selling a quarter or half halve.

Thanks,
Alan

Thanks,
Alan

 

[backhoeboogie]

Would you mind telling me your reason for not selling quarters or ,I assume you mean half halves also.

Alan,

Mostly I finish my steers for customers and haul them in groups to the processors. I am done at that point. The cut sheet specs are between the customer and processor. The processor doesn't want to get down to the nitty gritty specs on quarters. If two people want to split a half, I let them decide on specs and divide after they pick up the packaged beef. There are not many requests for quarters anyway.

I have a full time job at a large facility with many peers who buy beef. Most of them want a half or whole and this makes up most of my sales of this type. The quarter sales generally involve people who are on a fixed income and can't afford a half, someone who does not have sufficient freezer space or else elderly couples who do not eat enough beef to justify buying a half. I do indeed occasionally get the request, but they can find someone to split with on their own if they are willing to agree on the processing specs.

One more thing, occasionally you have standing order for the "same thing" they bought a previous year. Keep records of who bought what from which animal. Problem is, that cow may have a heifer calf for three years running and you cannot produce the same "steer" a customer had.

 

[KMacGinley]

Alan, heifers have to make up at least 40% of the beef supply.

Assuming 10% are retained as replacements.

My customers prefer heifers. More tender??? they think so.


Hope you got the answers you needed. Mac.