How much meat will I get?

The three weights, in order

Almost every argument between a customer and a processor comes down to these three getting mixed up. They are three different numbers for the same animal, and they get smaller in this order.

1. 1

   Live weight

   What the animal weighs on the hoof. It is the number you know going in, and the only one you can put on the scale yourself. Most shops never weigh it at all.

2. 2

   Hanging weight

   The chilled carcass on the rail, after the hide, head, feet and organs come off. Beef loses around 38 percent getting here, a hog around 28, a lamb close to half. This is the number on your bill.

3. 3

   Take home weight

   What goes in the freezer, after the carcass has aged and been boned out, trimmed and wrapped. Another 35 to 40 percent comes off the hanging weight as bone, fat and trim.

The cut sheet moves the number too

Two people can bring in identical steers and carry home fifty pounds apart, because the decisions on the cut sheet change what counts as a package. Keeping T-bones, short ribs and soup bones puts bone on the scale. Boning everything out gives you less total weight and more of it edible. Grinding a quarter of the animal into hamburger loses almost nothing, which is why shops suggest it for the tougher cuts.

If you have not filled one out before, the beef cut sheet guide walks through every question on it and what each answer costs you.

Common questions

How much meat do you get from a 1,200 lb steer?

A 1,200 lb steer hangs at roughly 695 to 770 lb, and comes back as about 425 to 500 lb of wrapped meat. That is a little under half the live weight. The spread depends on finish and on how much bone you keep: an order full of bone-in steaks and soup bones packages heavier than the same animal boned out.

Why is my bill based on hanging weight and not what I take home?

The shop weighs the carcass on the rail because that is the point where the work is measurable and the same for everyone. What comes home depends on choices you make on the cut sheet, so billing on it would mean the price changed based on whether you kept the bones. Expect the bill to be calculated on a number about 40 percent higher than the pounds you carry out.

What is the difference between live, hanging and take home weight?

Live weight is the animal on the scale. Hanging weight is the chilled carcass after the hide, head, feet and organs come off, and is what the shop bills on. Take home weight is what goes in your freezer after the carcass ages, gets boned out and trimmed. For beef those three run roughly 1,200, 740 and 470 lb.

How much freezer space do I need for a beef?

Count on about one cubic foot of freezer for every 35 lb of wrapped packages. A whole beef needs roughly 14 to 16 cubic feet, which is a large chest freezer on its own. A half beef fits in about 8, and a quarter in about 4.

Does hanging the beef longer lose weight?

Yes. Dry aging costs moisture, roughly half a percent to one percent a week, and more trim comes off the outside of a carcass that has hung a long time. Two weeks of aging is common and the tenderness is usually worth the few pounds.

How much venison comes off a deer?

A 150 lb whitetail gives about 50 to 60 lb of boneless venison, or roughly a third of live weight. Where the shot landed matters more than anything else on the list: a shoulder hit or a long tracking job in warm weather can cost several pounds.