At Cornerstone Farms, we are a full-carcass butchery. This means that we sell and process whole, half and quarter beef. There are many advantages to filling your freezer this way. There are a couple of key things that you need to be aware of if you have never purchased and processed your beef this way.
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Determining the proper quantity for your family- Depending on the size of your family and your eating habits, our butchers can help you determine if a whole, half or quarter animal is right for you. As a benchmark, below you will find the average yield from a half a side of beef.
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7 - 1.5” Tenderloin steaks
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10 - Strip steaks
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10 - Ribeye steaks
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6 - Sirloin steaks
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1 Chuck roast or 4 Ranch Steaks
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2 - Arm roasts
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1 - Brisket
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1 - Skirt steak
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1 - Flank steak
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2 - Bavette steaks
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3 Pc - Rump roast
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2 Pc - Eye of Round roast
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4 Pc - Top Round roast
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8 - Short Ribs
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Approx 100 lbs - Ground beef
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Pricing - We price off of a hanging weight of the animal at $6.95/lb. The hanging weight is more than the actual weight of the final processed product since it is the actual whole carcass. A carcass experiences weight loss from a few different factors. A certain amount of moisture loss is associated with the dry aging process. We typically dry age a hanging carcass for 7-14 days, where we’ve found our sweet spot for flavor and tenderness. If you want to adjust the length of the aging process you can. A carcass will experience trim loss as it’s processed when the fat and non-edible meat is removed. Bones are also an additional place for loss although the bones are recoverable for soup bones, marrow bones or dog food. Weight is also associated with offal, the liver, heart, tongue, etc. It is up to our customers whether or not you choose to take the offal.
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The advantage for you of pricing off of the hanging weight vs yield is that you are paying a lower average price for your order. Your least expensive meat type is grind and that is $8.00 / lb for 80/20. If you were to buy the total finished product at case prices, you would pay way more than the average that you pay from a hanging weight.
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We prepare as you like - each different cut will be bagged by type and vacuum sealed and prepared for the freezer. You can choose if you prefer 80/20 or 90/10 grind for your ground beef, as well as 1lb or 2lb packaging. Each different cut will be individually sealed to make it simple for you to pull from the freezer and prepare.
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Custom Cuts - When you purchase your custom order you will work with one of our butchers to create your custom cut sheet. There are a myriad of options depending on your cooking patterns and preferences. Do you cook a lot of roasts? Would you prefer chicken fried steak? Our butchers can help you walk through the correct choices for your family.
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Add-ons - While you are filling your freezer, what else might you need? Our butchery does not only offer custom cuts, but also additional, value-added products. We produce 17 different kinds of sausage, meatballs, and traditional regional sausages like Boerewors and Droewors. Our butchery team will make you aware of the additional products you can add to your “fridge filling” order to ensure you have all you need at your fingertips.