Beef
If you would like order, or to get on our email list to be notified as beef becomes available, please contact us.
Grass-fed, hormone-free, antibiotic-free, corn-free cattle who graze all summer on our certified organic pastures.
“Made a delicious stew this week using Living Song beef. It was terrific – both tender and flavorful. - Chris, St. Cloud”
about our beef
These are grass-fed cattle who graze all summer on our certified organic pastures and are never fed any grain.
See our page on Making the Perfect Beef Roast!
A quarter beef will be a “split half”, which mean that you’re buying a quarter of the animal, but not specifically a front or back. So you get all the cuts (if you just got, say, the left rear quarter, you wouldn’t get any brisket).
We raise a variety of breeds and sizes of cattle, so they generally finish out smaller than the typical corn-fed beef – anywhere from 110– 170 pounds hanging weight per quarter (your take-home weight is less unless you want all the bones) – which means it will take up less room in your freezer: around 3 cubic feet.
In general, when you purchase beef by the quarter, you’re getting it at a wholesale discount. Our price is $4.00 per pound, based on the “hanging weight”. This is the weight of the quarter after the animal has been butchered, but before it has been divided into individual cuts. Your quarter will be cut to your specifications, working directly with either White Front Meat Locker & Market in Cokato (see instructions below), or Petty Brothers Meats in Annandale, and you will pay them separately for the processing.
This process is called “custom exempt”. It can seem complicated if you’re new to it, but I will help you the whole way.
Think of it like this: you’re buying a share of the live animal from the farmer. The farmer continues to care for your animal and arranges for slaughter. Then you arrange with the butcher to process your share of the beef to your specifications.
“My family feels so good about buying Living Song Farm products. They produce nutritious, delicious food while making a positive impact on the land and treating their animals humanely. Their beef has amazing flavor, And knowing that the farmers are such quality people is truly icing on the cake.” - Jason, Minneapolis
MORE DETAILS ON BUYING A “SPLIT-HALF” QUARTER
If you haven’t purchased beef this way before, don’t let the fact that this process is a little complicated deter you; the benefits far outweigh the learning curve.
Why is it complicated? First off, we have to do certain things to comply with regulations. Secondly, the butcher is going to customize your quarter specifically to your tastes.
The basic concept is that under specific USDA rules, you can:
– buy a share of the animal from the farmer (me);
– in effect, as part of the sale price, the farmer keeps your animal for you until slaughter, and makes the arrangements for slaughter;
– you pick up your share of your animal from the butcher (not from the farmer), whom you pay for customizing your beef in the way that you want it.
- get it in the freezer promptly.
1) Call or email first to check availability: 763-244-6659, jerrywiltonford@gmail.com.
Then, if quarters are available, make your reservation by sending:
– a deposit check for $100
– your email and phone #
to:
Living Song Farm
7616 – 25th St. SW
Howard Lake, MN 55349
2) Wait until your animal matures and stocks up on all that grass goodness.
3) After the animals are slaughtered – which is done right here on the farm so there’s no scary truck ride for them – I’ll contact you with final pricing. You will send me a check for that amount, made out to Living Song Farm.
4) I’ll give you the information on the butcher just after slaughter. They will call you and guide you through customizing you order. They’ll help you decide how much roast you want, the thickness of your steaks, how much hamburger, and so on. Allow 20 minutes for this conversation.
5) The butcher will let you know when your meat will be ready. You will need to pick it up within a couple of days of that time and pay the butcher then.
6) Bring large containers or coolers, a jacket and warm gloves.
7) Take your meat home and enjoy!
Example pricing at White Front:
For Pricing at Petty Brothers go HERE.
Here’s an example of the butcher’s fees at White Front:
(subject to change)
$20 slaughter fee
$1.10 processing per pound of the hanging weight
This is just an estimate. Prices are based on several variables and could be more.
Example of payment to our farm for your share of beef:
If your quarter is 140 pounds hanging weight, your payment to our farm would be 140# x $4.00 = $560.00
Remember that you’ll be writing two checks:
- one to Living Song Farm to purchase your portion of the animal;
- another to the butcher to process your portion of that animal.
We appreciate you!
Jerry Ford, Living Song Farm, 763-244-6659, jerrywiltonford@gmail.com