Buying "Natural" meats..

[Helena]

Lately been very much fed up with the foreign foods in our stores. So..looked up in our area the farms that raise and sell organic..grass fed chickens, beef and pork. Yes..it is very expensives but so are medical bills. Husband has been a meat cutter for 40 years and foods sure aren't getting any better..with recallls and foreign meats. i personally have had health issues over thepast year or 2 and often wonder about the foods involved with them. So..think I will take the plunge and go and visit the farms and expect to by "dearly" for anything I buy. But...I have to keep telling myself not to think of the money but the health issue benefits. But yet again am I so "polluted" with unhealthy foods etc at my age will it make a difference. Is is wastefull then to eat out at a resturant not knowing what you are eating but enjoying the dinner out and just figure that 99% of the time you are eating good foods and...wish me luck on the other 1%.. Any thoughts ??

[jen74145]

If you've not had it before, you will be amazed by the difference in "real" meat. It has real flavor, real texture. You can eat less of it and feel satisified.

I am pretty well vegetarian unless I have cleanly raised meat. This year, I'm likely ordering a lamb from the nearest grass fed operation (and trying not to grouse about my 3/4ths acre the powers that be say I can't use to raise one... grump grumble).

[marinemomtatt]

It's never too late to make a change. Don't forget about eating healthier Fruits and Vegetables too, they should equal out to 2/3 of each meal. Follow that rule and you'll feel a difference...I Promise.

[Helena]

jen.. are you raising a lamb for the freezer or do you buy it already ready to eat ?? I also think that meat won't be on the table every night for dinner and eating less meat and more of a veggie diet is much better for us too.

[Tobster]

There are three local farmer's markets in my area which I visit. Not seen beef or pork offered, but free range chicken is available. I pay $8.00 for the chicken and $3 a dozen for the eggs. The prices often limit how much I purchase.

[jen74145]

Despite having the room, I live in a persnickety small town where I am not allowed to use my own property. Nevermind people keep vicious dogs and let cats roam, I am forbidden any food animals over ten pounds. It was a different story when I bought the place.

End rant. I'm buying one nicely processed and wrapped in the fall. I think it works out to $300/40 pounds or something like that.

I wish I had time and gumption to butcher, I have everything needed to raise rabbits but with DH away...

[joshp]

Helena- Check out your local Craigslist in the farm and garden section. In our area many of the small local farms advertise there. Many will even deliver the animal to the butcher/meat processor of your choice included in the price (beef for about $3 per # average).

You may want to have a look at www.pickyourown.org. We've found many local dairies, orchards, etc through them.


Mrs.Josh

[atobols]

Originally Posted by joshp

Helena- Check out your local Craigslist in the farm and garden section. In our area many of the small local farms advertise there. Many will even deliver the animal to the butcher/meat processor of your choice included in the price (beef for about $3 per # average).

You may want to have a look at www.pickyourown.org. We've found many local dairies, orchards, etc through them.


Mrs.Josh

This is what we do. I bought half a beef from the farmer who does our local CSA. He delivered it to the butcher just a couple miles from my house, and I went and picked up 186 pounds of beef yesterday. In the end, I paid about $3.20/pound for local grass-fed beef (not certified organic, but raised organically). That's so much cheaper than the prices at Whole Foods.

I found the farm we buy from at http://www.localharvest.org/

[soulsurvivor]

Beef, pork and chicken come from the butcher over in the next county. All the game, fish, turtle, and frog legs are from this county and caught fresh.

[highlands]

I you can do your own meat cutting that will save you tremendously. We raise livestock. The slaughter and butchering is about 40% of our costs and thus the price of the meat to our customers. Buy on the hoof and do your own slaughter or buy hanging and cut. Of the two, the slaughter is the harder work and the cutting is the more expensive part.

Cheers

-Walter
Sugar Mountain Farm
in the mountains of Vermont
Save 30% off Pastured Pork with free processing: http://SugarMtnFarm.com/csa
Read about our on-farm butcher shop project: http://SugarMtnFarm.com/butchershop

[woodsy]

We've been biting the bullet so to speak and paying the x-tra dollar for homegrown beef and pork. It's worth some peace of mind and the flavor is so much better.
Recently brought home a side of hog all processed , some smoked and hams, canadian bacon , sausage to kill for, LOL.. can't beat it !

[Bearfootfarm]

If you buy meat ready to eat (from a farm) chances are they had to slaughter and butcher it in a USDA inspected facility, so you wont save much money.

If you buy it live and butcher yourself, it can be MUCH cheaper.
I was going to suggest "Local Harvest" but someone beat me to it
I'm listed on there and it's a good site

[Maura]

the meat I buy on the hoof is processed at a packing house/slaughter house. I paid $2.25 per pound for half a pig, wrapped and frozen. The beef was a little more. I'm getting a lamb, wrapped and frozen, next week for about $100. All of the animals have been pastured with no hormones. You need to shop around.

[Shagbarkmtcatle]

We sell our grass-fed natural beef and poultry on eatwild.com. We are under W. Virginia, Virginia and Maryland. We can't keep up with the demand. I am also trying pastured pork this year. And I sell eggs but my neighbor takes them to work and they buy me out.

[Lizza]

Another site to look at is: http://eatwild.com/

Like anything if you shop around you can find decent prices, for the most part you will have to buy the whole animal or at least 1/4 but it is worth it.

I actually found local grass fed ground beef for $3.85 per pound, sold in 1lb "chubs" or 5lbs of pre-made burger patties, at a local health food store, which I thought was pretty darn good.