Do You Trust Your Butcher?

TroutRiver · #21 04/27/12, 11:19 AM

We had suspicions similar to yours last year with our slaughterhouse/butcher. We switched to a different butcher and started consistently getting back 100lb+ more beef per steer than we were with the other one (the steers were approximately the same size).

Yes, this is a problem with lots of processors.

bama-newsteader · #22 04/27/12, 11:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cheryl aka JM

I'm guessing the Amish place your talking about might be Weavers in Falkville? Thats who I use and I absolutely love them, but you have to make your appointment very early and they do shut down in the winter for deer season. This year they told me they are going to shut down even earlier due to a load of Emu they will be getting end of season. So I went to check out the place in Cullman.....
I noticed the smell too
I'm planning to call Weaver tomorrow and make the apt for my beef this Aug or Sept however late they will let me arrange. Its a little early but I'd rather avoid that smell at the other place too.....

Yes, it was Weaver. They are a bit far from us, but I think it is worth the drive. Once again I would want to butcher our bull at 18months in December, but since they will be closed we will probably wait until March. Medley's in Hokes Bluff is the other place - closer to us, I think they did a good job, but cant handle the smell.

ChristieAcres · #23 04/27/12, 12:17 PM

I did research, checked the reps of 3 different Butchers, before deciding to go the extra distance for the best one. We took two of our pigs to Home Meats in Shelton, WA, which is almost 1.5 hours one-way. This Butcher had 100% positive feedback, zero complaints, and has been in biz for 40 years. They encourage you to watch the butchering process/packaging, allow you to watch slaughtering, even of other animals than your own, if you wish. Their kitchen is large, incredibly clean, and they run a very tight ship. They are family owned/operated and their bookeeping excellent. You get hang weight up front, estimates of net meat weights, and we got 100% of our meat back. They tag the pigs, carefully note, code the boxes to match the tags, the meat to be cured/smoked, also coded the same way. You ask for the fat, they package it the day they butcher and offer it right to you, or will freeze it, and let you pick it up with your meat order. I saw them package all of our meat, weigh the boxes, and also note the weights on the boxes. We were very pleased with all the choices we got to make, and even got to make choices while our pork was being cut. They encouraged questions, also offered to explain what they were doing, which cuts they were doing, too. First class place! We will not do business with any one else.

This Butcher shop sells retail, Owner raises cattle, too.

Other Butcher shops, local, and less than 1/2 hour away? One had a terrible rep while the other about average.

Karen in Alabam · #24 04/30/12, 09:51 AM

Like Bama-newsteader said. We tried Weaver and I went there because a guy I was getting feed from recommended them. Very clean and had excellent paperwork.

We used a place in Cullman the year before and they are over an hour from us and we didn't think we got everything back. I had to go back and get the tongue (which when I got there they said they usually charge $5.00 to cut it out--they didn't charge me) and the tallow. They had no clue what tallow was and so didn't write it down (we did it over the phone as someone else was delivering the bull). When I explained you can make suet out of it--then they knew and so had some ready for me when I had to drive back. They do have a retail shop. We had split the bull with Bama-newsteader and she was convinced we didn't get all the meat back from them.

Then we went to weaver--nice operation and had a place to wash out your trailer.

The place in Hokes bluff was in their back yard, and as stated stunk. Didn't have a hose where you could rinse out the trailer. He opened the cooler and there was a pile of deer in there. I have tried the meat they got back from them and it was good. But they bagged up all the bones into one solid mass that they were not usable.

They had a sheet of paper with only a few cuts on it. So we had to write stuff like: ox tail (didn't know that was a desirable thing till some friends told us), liver, tongue, mountain oysters (still don't know what I am going to do with those). and so forth, tallow (they knew what that was).

I felt that without all the options listed, they were hoping you wouldn't ask for those things so they could keep it.

Weaver had everything spelled out so you didn't forget anything.

Cheryl aka JM · #25 04/30/12, 12:49 PM

I called Weaver to make our apt but they have decided not to do the Emu and will still be doing beef in Sept afterall. So anyone who was thinking they needed to quick make an apt its no big hurry now. They said wait till next month to make fall apts.

farmgirl6 · #26 04/30/12, 01:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cheryl aka JM

I called Weaver to make our apt but they have decided not to do the Emu and will still be doing beef in Sept afterall. So anyone who was thinking they needed to quick make an apt its no big hurry now. They said wait till next month to make fall apts.

Cheryl if you decide to split and sell any of your beef am very interested...

Cheryl aka JM · #27 04/30/12, 01:52 PM

I am selling 3 halves I think Carol is txting you about them right now. I quoted a price to her without putting a lot of thought into it yet. If I decide to ask more later I will honor the price Carol is quoting you if you have already made a deposit. If I decide beef prices are down before fall and I lower it I will offer you the lower per/lb price. These will be the two FreeMartin Holstein girls, they will be around 30 months old when we send them in. Depending on what buyers with deposits want I may add corn to their pasture diet in June or I may not. I know I have one previous customer who really doesn't want his beef corn fed at all, if he can afford to buy again this year I will need at least one more person to not want corn to split one of the girls with the other customer. Just yesterday I put them on a rented peice of land to help put more grass fat on them than my little pasture is doing. I've not corn fed one before and am thinking about trying that for my beef this year so I'll need one customer who does want corn fed to split the other girl with me. Just not sure what I'll do yet, depends on what people who make deposits want done.

SteveO · #28 04/30/12, 07:59 PM

Anyone have a recomendation for NW TN
Anywhere from Jackson tn to nashville
I40 to Murray KY
I have my first grassfed lowline ready for this fall and really need to make sure I get mine back
Steve

jstamper · #29 05/01/12, 01:07 PM

What about recommendations for SW VA / NW NC?

genebo · #30 05/01/12, 04:20 PM

Matkins Meats, in Gibsonville, NC. Very good and USDA inspected. If you set up a logo for your farm, they will weigh and price each package individually, ready for your retail sales.

Darstcreek · #31 05/04/12, 07:11 AM

anybody know of any good honest butchers by Seguin Tx ? thanks

KMA1 · #32 05/04/12, 08:39 AM

I will also put in a good word for Weaver's in Falkville. Best I have found still in operation in North Alabama. Great place and I am extremely happy with their vacum packing. And it is a great price. I took 2 animals in last year totaling 2200 lbs live weight. Brought back a little over 1100 lbs of meat with no bones. I will be taking 2 more this year if I can find another buyer for the second one.