I wanted to share my family's experience the last year and a half in trying to dabble in this market. Feel free to point and laugh or shake your head at our naivety. We're plenty humble about it.

We jumped into selling shares of grain-finished calves to people in 2020 when prices at the market bottomed out with no subsequent decrease in the retail shelf price. The first round was a learning curve but we quickly realized a good formula for packing on the pounds and marbling.

We ended up with excellent quality meat that attracted a fair amount of repeat buyers, but getting commitments from new buyers of late has been a challenge. Some things that have caught us off guard:

-People really don't understand what grass fed vs grain finished beef is.
-They seem to think grass fed beef can have appreciable marbling.
-Many seem to think if they eat a grain fed animal they could have allergic reactions to the grain. I still can't believe this is being perpetuated.
-People get scared away when they ask whether our cattle are vaccinated and we confirm they are. Really. They are equating that to antibiotics.
-When you ask them if they know what's in their meat from HEB, they give you a blank stare.
-People claim they are interested because they like buying local. We list all the local businesses our ranch does business with. They then continue shopping at the box stores even though our prices are lower on the average.
-ManY people have been scared off by the a holes selling grass fed beef and lying to these people about what they're getting. I've talked to about 20-30 people who tried a grass fed calf from someone else the last couple years and are not willing to buy calves again because of it.

I know - it's not supposed to be easy. Curious what experiences others may have had. Edit-We are not rookies to cow calf operations but specifically to direct to consumer sales.

So you're saying they want THIS type of plant-based meat but not THAT type?

I'm kind of dumb on this subject. Does this work in the same way that I would process a deer and fill a freezer? I've never looked into this. As a person who shops weekly for meals, I've never understood how this works.

BCStalk said:

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I'm kind of dumb on this subject. Does this work in the same way that I would process a deer and fill a freezer? I've never looked into this. As a person who shops weekly for meals, I've never understood how this works.

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Basically. We sell a portion of the calf to folks and take to local processor. They are paying us for the portion of the animal and the processor for the butchering.

Edit-I don't want this to be perceived as an advertisement or I'd go into more detail- definitely was not my intention but appreciate the honest question.

flashplayer said:

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-People really don't understand what grass fed vs grain finished beef is.
-They seem to think grass fed beef can have appreciable marbling.
-Many seem to think if they eat a grain fed animal they could have allergic reactions to the grain. I still can't believe this is being perpetuated.
-People get scared away when they ask whether our cattle are vaccinated and we confirm they are. Really. They are equating that to antibiotics.
-When you ask them if they know what's in their meat from HEB, they give you a blank stare.

---

I've been in the meat/food industry for about 20 yrs and this is certainly par for the course.

The best thing that the beef industry ever did is basically give up on consumer education. It doesn't work. Tyson/Cargill/JBS can team up with TAMU, TTU, CSU, and OSU put together these wonderful consumer education campaigns that look and sound great to us, but it's all for not. A viral Facebook post about some idiot putting red food coloring in ground beef will get more shares than a beautiful, scientific, fact-based infographic.

Just give consumers what they want; which most of the time is just high quality meat at a reasonable price. That's it.

Sorry that so many people suck. I think what you are offering is a good deal to a certain group. Unfortunately too many out there are ignorant

We have evolved to a practice where we provide as little technical information as possible unless specifically asked. I know that sounds bad, but it's pretty well necessary based on the crazy responses we get from some people.

Jason C. said:

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So you're saying they want THIS type of plant-based meat but not THAT type?

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Did you even read the OP? This thread has nothing to do with meat alternatives

mpl35 said:

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Sorry that so many people suck. I think what you are offering is a good deal to a certain group. Unfortunately too many out there are ignorant

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This is what my opinion is on the subject. I myself am extremely ignorant on this. I didn't know that I could buy a portion of a calf. I also was thinking that I would have to handle the processing on my end. What you are providing is something that smaller households like mine could benefit out of.

Yep. That's exactly the right approach. Be honest when asked, but most of the time they will just believe what they want to believe.

Grass fed beef is an acquired taste. Or so I'm told.

That **** is NOT for me!

Can you arrange shipping to the Houston area, obviously included in the price paid.

I agree with a previous poster, grass fed beef is just not good. You just need to run in to the right buyer I would think. But I'm not in that industry, so I'm speaking purely from opinion.

Schulenberg would be our halfway point to the middle of Houston. We have only marketed the Austin/ San Antonio / Seguin area. Houston would be challenging unless we had a boatload of meat sold that way. We really are small time so we have not evolved to contemplating delivery that far.

It presents logistical challenges that make it very high risk for someone our size, but we have realized this as one of our self-imposed limitations.

flashplayer said:

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I wanted to share my family's experience the last year and a half in trying to dabble in this market. Feel free to point and laugh or shake your head at our naivety. We're plenty humble about it.

We jumped into selling shares of grain-finished calves to people in 2020 when prices at the market bottomed out with no subsequent decrease in the retail shelf price. The first round was a learning curve but we quickly realized a good formula for packing on the pounds and marbling.

We ended up with excellent quality meat that attracted a fair amount of repeat buyers, but getting commitments from new buyers of late has been a challenge. Some things that have caught us off guard:

-People really don't understand what grass fed vs grain finished beef is.
-They seem to think grass fed beef can have appreciable marbling.
-Many seem to think if they eat a grain fed animal they could have allergic reactions to the grain. I still can't believe this is being perpetuated.
-People get scared away when they ask whether our cattle are vaccinated and we confirm they are. Really. They are equating that to antibiotics.
-When you ask them if they know what's in their meat from HEB, they give you a blank stare.
-People claim they are interested because they like buying local. We list all the local businesses our ranch does business with. They then continue shopping at the box stores even though our prices are lower on the average.
-ManY people have been scared off by the a holes selling grass fed beef and lying to these people about what they're getting. I've talked to about 20-30 people who tried a grass fed calf from someone else the last couple years and are not willing to buy calves again because of it.

I know - it's not supposed to be easy. Curious what experiences others may have had. Edit-We are not rookies to cow calf operations but specifically to direct to consumer sales.

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I have an uncle that raises grass fed Waygu that we buy a quarter from every year and another friend that does grain fed we buy a quarter from every year, and the grain fed is the best beef I ever had. I pay about $4.10/lb total for meat and processing (ground beef and all of the cuts) for each of them.

As long as I have either of these options available won't ever buy store bought beef again. There's just no comparison, so I am a big purchaser and believer in what the op is doing.

However, there's a reason why places like Applebee's, chili's, McDonald's etc... stay in business and it's not because their food is amazing. It's because it's the exact same every where you go. Some people value consistency a ton and it's how these places with bad food thrive. I don't get it because I'm not like that (as I'm sure a large number of people are on the OB) but some people would "feel better" about knowing exactly what they're getting as opposed to taking a chance on the unknown especially in quarter to whole cow sizes.

As much as you try there will be differences between your beef that you sell. Some people will get it and love one and they'll get the next one and they like it, but it'll taste a little bit different and their brains tell them that there's something wrong. There's nothing wrong. Its just that some people are so used to eating homogenous garbage that they can't get past simple variances in a product.

I know with what you do, at least my friend and uncle will attest, you can't sell smaller cuts than a quarter-cow but I wonder if you get get some packages together that were affordable in just getting people to try it. Or even just have a food truck that you can whip up some steaks and hamburgers from your own product and show people what it's all about. I mean, damn, it is amazing when it's done right. Best of luck to you.

flashplayer,

It sounds like you're offering a tasty product.

It seems like in the last 3 or 4 decades 'fat' became a bad word and beef quality, I think, has suffered because of that. I believe the husbandry guys even actively try to breed leaner stock.

Remember when Fort Worth had a 'Fat' Stock Show? And in the Bible they'd kill the 'fatted' calf when they wanted to make a good showing.

Now stuff has most of the fat trimmed off of it by the butcher, grass fed is called 'superior', and you can't buy a juicy hamburger to save your life.

I kind of miss ordering a steak in a decent steakhouse and have them bringing it on a sizzling platter with an ample amount of fat still attached. No, you wouldn't really eat all that fat, but it added something to the flavor of the whole meal.

Maybe things will change back. Maybe not.

Regardless. Good luck with what you're doing. Sometimes things kind of sputter along until they really take off.

My family raises cattle and we always had our own beef in the freezer. Store bought is not as good in my opinion. We always took the blind one or two that won't sell as well and fatten up on grain and have them butchered. My brother in law has started selling grass fed beef mainly because stupid people will pay more for grass fed which is cheaper to produce so I get why producers want to go to grass fed beef. But my opinion is it is terrible and I wouldn't get it again.

tsuag10 said:

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flashplayer said:

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-People really don't understand what grass fed vs grain finished beef is.
-They seem to think grass fed beef can have appreciable marbling.
-Many seem to think if they eat a grain fed animal they could have allergic reactions to the grain. I still can't believe this is being perpetuated.
-People get scared away when they ask whether our cattle are vaccinated and we confirm they are. Really. They are equating that to antibiotics.
-When you ask them if they know what's in their meat from HEB, they give you a blank stare.

---

I've been in the meat/food industry for about 20 yrs and this is certainly par for the course.

The best thing that the beef industry ever did is basically give up on consumer education. It doesn't work. Tyson/Cargill/JBS can team up with TAMU, TTU, CSU, and OSU put together these wonderful consumer education campaigns that look and sound great to us, but it's all for not. A viral Facebook post about some idiot putting red food coloring in ground beef will get more shares than a beautiful, scientific, fact-based infographic.

Just give consumers what they want; which most of the time is just high quality meat at a reasonable price. That's it.

---

Big Ag wants to keep consumers in the dark because of the horrific conditions of feedlots and processing plants.

Also, you can have good marbling on grass finished beef. But it starts with selecting for grass genetics and managing pasture. Which is something that few farmers know how to do anymore.

OP, curious to know your experience with processing and how much that added to the overall cost. That seems to be a designed choke point.

Good luck on your endeavor.

Processing cost accounts for an average of roughly $1.37/lb finished product, more if you do further trimming than standard.

That's definitely a spot where the big packers have the little man soundly beat. Feed costs are another area.

And for the poster who asked if we have tried smaller quantities- we did more recently put together a 40 lb sampler option for those who only want to dip their toe in. That did actually get a pretty good number of folks to try it on our last round of butchering but it wasn't enough to sell what we needed to.

Bidens leg hairs said:

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Big Ag wants to keep consumers in the dark because of the horrific conditions of feedlots and processing plants.

Also, you can have good marbling on grass finished beef. But it starts with selecting for grass genetics and managing pasture. Which is something that few farmers know how to do anymore.

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There is zero factual information to back up your claims. Modern feedlots and processing facilities are much different than what we see on some expose news story in the 80s and 90s.

I've always loved grass-fed beef we got straight from the producer. Much better than anything you get at the store. I guess I'm spoiled now - it is very easy to see the difference. Working in a rural area, I have my choice of locally produced beef as many of my student's parents are in the field (small-time).

It's funny to go to a "great" steak place and order something other than steak - because I know it won't compare.

Americans generally do not like flavor.

FIDO*98* said:

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Jason C. said:

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So you're saying they want THIS type of plant-based meat but not THAT type?

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Did you even read the OP? This thread has nothing to do with meat alternatives

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Pretty sure he's making fun of the same people whose ignorance the OP is lamenting. Maybe he needed sarcasm font.

Agreed. I ordered it a few times at steak houses in Fort Worth and Calgary and found out I wasn't a fan. It was way too gamey. I'll buy grass fed ground beef to put into tacos or soups, but if it's not ground and doused with heavy seasoning, give me the corn fed.

I think you already have your answer, the common consumer is very uneducated. As someone else said, people have been trained (brainwashed?) to think fat is bad. Unfortunately, I dont know how you correct that, other than do the educating yourself any opportunity you get. Have some facts handy or articles to send them too if someone asks about your beef and then seems turned off because its not: non-gmo, organic, free-range, grass-fed, natural, no hormones added, beef.

I know a couple of operations also running direct to consumer beef sales like yall are and one thing you might try is market it as grass fed, but grain finished. Sounds dumb but there are some people that when they hear "grain fed" think that cow has had nothing but grain its entire life and never tasted grass which would be unnatural.

Quote:

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Big Ag wants to keep consumers in the dark because of the horrific conditions of feedlots and processing plants.

Also, you can have good marbling on grass finished beef. But it starts with selecting for grass genetics and managing pasture. Which is something that few farmers know how to do anymore.

---

I dont know if I could disagree with this statement any more than 100%, but I'd like to. There is nothing that they are hiding, I toured both MC6 cattle feeders and Caviness Meat Packers up in the panhandle last fall and all animals are treated humanely from start to slaughter, there's no conspiracy that cattle are being treated poorly. And there are many, many ranchers that know they are "grass farmers" first and foremost, and are always striving to be a good steward of the land, so to act like they are all ignorant on how to maintain good pastures is an insult.

I try to only eat grass fed, grass finished when I can but I won't turn away grain finished if it's the only option.

tsuag10 said:

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flashplayer said:

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-People really don't understand what grass fed vs grain finished beef is.
-They seem to think grass fed beef can have appreciable marbling.
-Many seem to think if they eat a grain fed animal they could have allergic reactions to the grain. I still can't believe this is being perpetuated.
-People get scared away when they ask whether our cattle are vaccinated and we confirm they are. Really. They are equating that to antibiotics.
-When you ask them if they know what's in their meat from HEB, they give you a blank stare.

---

I've been in the meat/food industry for about 20 yrs and this is certainly par for the course.

The best thing that the beef industry ever did is basically give up on consumer education. It doesn't work. Tyson/Cargill/JBS can team up with TAMU, TTU, CSU, and OSU put together these wonderful consumer education campaigns that look and sound great to us, but it's all for not. A viral Facebook post about some idiot putting red food coloring in ground beef will get more shares than a beautiful, scientific, fact-based infographic.

Just give consumers what they want; which most of the time is just high quality meat at a reasonable price. That's it.

---

or Oprah.

Good post agfan

Side note; not directed to agfan's post:
The grass fed vs grain fed shouldn't really be a debate. It all comes down to personal preference. It is a fact that currently most Americans prefer the taste of grain finished beef. It's not debatable. However, even the large beef packers have taken a stake in large grass-finishing operations. They realize the grass fed beef market isn't insignificant, and they don't want to lose that marketshare.
Will grass-finished beef become a larger portion of the US market? Probably.
Will grass-finished beef become the new majority in the US? Very, very unlikely.
Grass finishing takes longer, and time is money. Also, the older the animal gets during the finishing phase, the tougher and darker the meat becomes.

We should provide customers with anything and everything they ask for, and price it according to the real production costs. If they want to pay for it, I think that's absolutely great.

So don't hate on someone because they produce or prefer to eat grain fed beef. And don't judge someone else because they only eat organic/grass fed/free range and choose to pay a premium for it.

agfan2013 said:

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I think you already have your answer, the common consumer is very uneducated. As someone else said, people have been trained (brainwashed?) to think fat is bad. Unfortunately, I dont know how you correct that, other than do the educating yourself any opportunity you get. Have some facts handy or articles to send them too if someone asks about your beef and then seems turned off because its not: non-gmo, organic, free-range, grass-fed, natural, no hormones added, beef.

I know a couple of operations also running direct to consumer beef sales like yall are and one thing you might try is market it as grass fed, but grain finished. Sounds dumb but there are some people that when they hear "grain fed" think that cow has had nothing but grain its entire life and never tasted grass which would be unnatural.

Quote:

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Big Ag wants to keep consumers in the dark because of the horrific conditions of feedlots and processing plants.

Also, you can have good marbling on grass finished beef. But it starts with selecting for grass genetics and managing pasture. Which is something that few farmers know how to do anymore.

---

I dont know if I could disagree with this statement any more than 100%, but I'd like to. There is nothing that they are hiding, I toured both MC6 cattle feeders and Caviness Meat Packers up in the panhandle last fall and all animals are treated humanely from start to slaughter, there's no conspiracy that cattle are being treated poorly. And there are many, many ranchers that know they are "grass farmers" first and foremost, and are always striving to be a good steward of the land, so to act like they are all ignorant on how to maintain good pastures is an insult.

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I'll go beyond disagreeing 100% and just say you're full of s***

Had a wild wagyu steer that would run through the fence if he couldn't go over it. Finally just turned him out into the bull trap and left him alone until slaughter weight; figured we'd find out what this wagyu was all about. Was bigger than we planned on when we finally caught him and damn near killed himself and the trailer too but to the packer he went. 100% grass fed except for some cubes here and there and can tell you that the marbling was excellent but definitely had that grass fed taste.

Unless you are able to provide evidence or information to support your position, I think you might be the person that is full of it. So far, you've provided nothing in the form of credibility or evidence.

Or you can just say that you hate "factory farming" and CAFOs, and that it's based mainly on emotions. I'm ok with that, just don't try to argue against facts with emotion.

flashplayer said:

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I wanted to share my family's experience the last year and a half in trying to dabble in this market. Feel free to point and laugh or shake your head at our naivety. We're plenty humble about it.

We jumped into selling shares of grain-finished calves to people in 2020 when prices at the market bottomed out with no subsequent decrease in the retail shelf price. The first round was a learning curve but we quickly realized a good formula for packing on the pounds and marbling.

We ended up with excellent quality meat that attracted a fair amount of repeat buyers, but getting commitments from new buyers of late has been a challenge. Some things that have caught us off guard:

-People really don't understand what grass fed vs grain finished beef is.
-They seem to think grass fed beef can have appreciable marbling.
-Many seem to think if they eat a grain fed animal they could have allergic reactions to the grain. I still can't believe this is being perpetuated.
-People get scared away when they ask whether our cattle are vaccinated and we confirm they are. Really. They are equating that to antibiotics.
-When you ask them if they know what's in their meat from HEB, they give you a blank stare.
-People claim they are interested because they like buying local. We list all the local businesses our ranch does business with. They then continue shopping at the box stores even though our prices are lower on the average.
-ManY people have been scared off by the a holes selling grass fed beef and lying to these people about what they're getting. I've talked to about 20-30 people who tried a grass fed calf from someone else the last couple years and are not willing to buy calves again because of it.

I know - it's not supposed to be easy. Curious what experiences others may have had. Edit-We are not rookies to cow calf operations but specifically to direct to consumer sales.

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Do you have a website or something that describes the process? I'm curious how this would work. I would love to be a customer but not sure if I need a new freezer for the massive amount of beef. I also assume I need to be close to where you are for this to work.

Also, thanks for sharing and kudos to you for having the guts to give this a go. I think this is a great idea and wish stuff like this would catch on everywhere. Best of luck to you.

tsuag10 said:

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And don't judge someone else because they only eat organic/grass fed/free range and choose to pay a premium for it.

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Don't judge me for judging hippies

Kind of hard to have evidence when it's illegal to take pictures of feedlots and processing facilities. Think about that for a minute. You all are criticizing the public for being ignorant of the food system yet the industrial AG itself keeps the public in the dark and literally lobbies for legislation to fight transparency.