How much can it cost to raise a cow.

[liquid addiction]

Good Lord, over $60 for a package of 3 ribeye steaks at Costco. How much are they making off of 1 head when you add all of the other cuts that come from 1? Then the scraps can be made into hamburger and hot dogs. I know things are not cheap, but $60 for just 3 steaks from it. I told my wife I think we need to buy a couple animals.

 

[NicPaus]

The Farmer probably makes $350-500 a head. Not much considering all the work. And possibility of animals dieing.

I know my Grandparents farm has been empty for over 10 years. Uncle said its not possible to compete with the big operations.

 

[JL95]

Do you know what it takes $ to put a steer in a work truck?

 

[LargeOrangeFont]

and we are off!

 

[Wheeler]

Good Lord, over $60 for a package of 3 ribeye steaks at Costco. How much are they making off of 1 head when you add all of the other cuts that come from 1? Then the scraps can be made into hamburger and hot dogs. I know things are not cheap, but $60 for just 3 steaks from it. I told my wife I think we need to buy a couple animals.

Have you picked out names for them?

 

[CLdrinker]

Joel can answer this one.

 

[angiebaby]

You realize it's not the ranchers getting $$$ off of this, right? It's the middlemen. The ranchers I come into contact with up here in Montana are struggling to survive. Most of the kids have no interest in continuing the family business. Can't find help. Fuel prices are through the roof, etc.

 

[BHC Vic]

Not only is it not cheap to raise animals it’s soooooo much work. I keep goats pigs and chickens. It’s expensive and those are just pets. Yesterday I bought one bale of Bermuda, 2 50lbs egg layer and 1 50lb peg pellet. 110 bucks. I already have a bag of worms but that’s another 30 and I’m going to buy a bunch of produce because they like fresh fruits and veggies. It’s not cheap at all

 

[Done-it-again]

Good Lord, over $60 for a package of 3 ribeye steaks at Costco. How much are they making off of 1 head when you add all of the other cuts that come from 1? Then the scraps can be made into hamburger and hot dogs. I know things are not cheap, but $60 for just 3 steaks from it. I told my wife I think we need to buy a couple animals.

Break down a whole ribeye. I do this with a prime NY and the whole loin is about $16-17 lb and get about 12 steaks from it depending on size. The whole NY cost about $165

 

[liquid addiction]

The Farmer probably makes $350-500 a head. Not much considering all the work. And possibility of animals dieing.

I know my Grandparents farm has been empty for over 10 years. Uncle said its not possible to compete with the big operations.

I figured it would not be the rancher making the money. And raising them can't be cheap. My thing is looking at a package of any cut at the store. I did score on some whole chicken breasts @ .99 a pound.

 

[Cdog]

I buy several roasts during thanksgiving, Christmas & easter for $5-7 per lb. Cut them up and freeze nice thick ribeyes for all year. Had one Saturday after a 12 hr day in the garage.

 

[JUSTWANNARACE]

I pay $3.50lb hanging weight

 

[LargeOrangeFont]

I figured it would not be the rancher making the money. And raising them can't be cheap. My thing is looking at a package of any cut at the store. I did score on some whole chicken breasts @ .99 a pound.

Nice. We bought 40 lbs of farm raised whole breasts at $1.99/lb when they go on special. They are excellent.

 

[Canuck 1]

Good Lord, over $60 for a package of 3 ribeye steaks at Costco. How much are they making off of 1 head when you add all of the other cuts that come from 1? Then the scraps can be made into hamburger and hot dogs. I know things are not cheap, but $60 for just 3 steaks from it. I told my wife I think we need to buy a couple animals.

It ain't the ranchers, it is the packing houses and retailers that are making the $$$$$. Add in gov regs and taxes on everything and the over price on fuel and drought conditions here and the list goes on

 

[450grip]

Not to thread-Jack …
But can someone please remind me what the users name is that raises/sells beef, and occasionally delivers to Havasu?

 

[King295]

Not to thread-Jack …
But can someone please remind me what the users name is that raises/sells beef, and occasionally delivers to Havasu?

@wash11

 

[450grip]

@wash11

Thank you

 

[JUSTWANNARACE]

My last go round of beef

..

 

[CLdrinker]

Nice. We bought 40 lbs of farm raised whole breasts at $1.99/lb when they go on special. They are excellent.

Where you getting that deal.

 

[~JM~]

Location!

More cost effective to graze a cow in Western Washington than Eastern Washington, etc.

 

[LargeOrangeFont]

Where you getting that deal.

Local butcher shop. Also 10 lbs rib eye ground beef for $50. Makes awesome ground beef tacos, burgers and meatloaf.

 

[sirbob]

As has been said, the cattle farmers aren't getting rich! I was just having this discussion with a friend at his cattle farm a couple of months ago. He tells me if its a good year he might get $1500 per head at auction!

 

[JUSTWANNARACE]

We try and not but any meat from the stores, at least the last couple years. Hence the weekend project..

Todays situation...

Gonna be a long day!

www.riverdavesplace.com

 

[CLdrinker]

Farmers need to go direct to consumer.

 

[MPHSystems]

How much can it cost to raise a cow​

I’d have to ask Lizzo’s parents.

 

[185EZ]

Do you know what it takes $ to put a steer in a work truck?

 

[JFMFG]

Not to thread-Jack …
But can someone please remind me what the users name is that raises/sells beef, and occasionally delivers to Havasu?

@wash11

 

[renodaytona]

My GF's family owns a cattle ranch in Dixon CA on the delta. They generally lease land up in the hills to graze their cattle. I went to the auction at the Silver Legacy a couple months ago. They did well at auction and beat a lot of their competitors on price per LB. It' costs a lot to keep the operation going. They generally have about 3000 head they are working all of the time.

 

[Roosky01]

Farmers need to go direct to consumer.

That’s what everyone should be doing.

Since we are showing off our beef porn.

 

[ChrisV]

That’s what everyone should be doing.

Since we are showing off our beef porn.

View attachment 1279432

Normal for Wisconsin peeps. My wife’s family is like this too.

 

[angiebaby]

We buy from the local butcher shop who sources the beef from local ranches. The steaks are not cheap, but not any more than the grocery store feedlot cattle factory crap, and the burger is $3.99/lb.

 

[angiebaby]

That’s what everyone should be doing.

Since we are showing off our beef porn.

View attachment 1279432

How long does that last?

 

[2Driver]

I bet trucking and fuel costs have a big kicker in the cost.

Prices will go down when all the trucks are electric.

 

[rivermobster]

I'd love to buy everything from @wash11 but I'm just not set up for it, yet.

Meanwhile...

I buy everything from the local butcher shop. Expensive? Yep. Worth it? Even more so.

I'm done buying meat from a grocery store.

 

[Mandelon]

Rabbits and goats are cheaper to raise. MmmmMmmm How about a rabbit thigh or a goat prime rib? LOL

 

[snowhammer]

I dropped this guy at the butcher last week. He was well fed and cared for, and a pasture mate of our 4H steer.

The guy at the slaughter house was telling me about the waste water treatment plant the state is mandating he install to the tune of approximately $1M. The requirement will be for the rinse water to be drinkable. So when you are discussing costs, don't forget the green worshippers.

 

[Roosky01]

How long does that last?

That's a 1/2 beef and we get one every Fall. That pic was from last week when I filled the freezer. However, I do give a pile of roasts & burger away to those that find themselves in need during the year.

 

[angiebaby]

That's a 1/2 beef and we get one every Fall. That pic was from last week when I filled the freezer. However, I do give a pile of roasts & burger away to those that find themselves in need during the year.

Family size? I guess I should have included that in my first question

 

[JUSTWANNARACE]

How long does that last?

Depends on how it is wrapped and how well it was bled out. Our guy wraps in a thin plastic film(keeps air out) then wraps twice in butcher paper.

 

[Roosky01]

Family size? I guess I should have included that in my first question

4 humans. We don't eat much yard bird around here.

 

[Racey]

Depends on how it is wrapped and how well it was bled out. Our guy wraps in a thin plastic film(keeps air out) then wraps twice in butcher paper.

Wrapped like that at least 2 years in a deep freeze and will still be good

 

[wash11]

I say do it!!!

Some of my most loyal customers are people that have raised their own- if that tells you anything. I'd suggest gardening first. Once you realize that first year tomato's cost you $37.00 each you'll be happy you didn't run this play with livestock.

Most people will tell you that they love the experience of raising their own food- it's not about the money. There's no chance that any of us can compete with grocery store pricing, even the guy raising one per year for himself. The government subsidies alone demolish the playing field for the little guy.

We've slowly built a following of people that value what we do, and how transparent we are while doing it. My guess is no less than 70 RDP families have been to our place over the years to see everything firsthand- what we feed, how the animals live, sanitation etc. Year after year, it's same two aging faces that show up on delivery day for a full freezer and a nice conversation. It's always the same person answering the phone or returning a text message. The number of people involved with what I put in your freezer can be counted on one hand, including the butcher.

I say all that to say this- I honestly don't know what it costs Costco to get 3 prime ribeye's into your freezer, but I could never do it that cheap. I keep plugging away, doing the best I can using the best quality feed, staying away from pharmaceuticals and giving my critters a decent life and thankfully there's a little community that values that enough to pay the true cost of doing this.

Speaking to grocery store beef, Costco or otherwise is pretty far out of my wheelhouse.

To the OP, if you end up bringing some steers home to raise call me anytime if you have questions and I'll do my best to help.
Joel 928-486-4043

 

[1manshow]

Good Lord, over $60 for a package of 3 ribeye steaks at Costco. How much are they making off of 1 head when you add all of the other cuts that come from 1? Then the scraps can be made into hamburger and hot dogs. I know things are not cheap, but $60 for just 3 steaks from it. I told my wife I think we need to buy a couple animals.

Like @NicPaus mentioned probably about 350-500 mentioned earlier
2400.00 is what it cost to raise from day old to slaughter… Those beef animals eat a lot of corn and finish them out is not cheap also keep in mind a Holstein/Angus Day old drop calf cost as of today 630.00 per head

They get Slaughtered @ 1375 lbs and 17 months of age with a daily feed cost of 3.62.

Also Feed, medicine and labor is a killer… plus $92 per head in interest theses days.

 

[wash11]

Like @NicPaus mentioned probably about 350-500 mentioned earlier
2400.00 is what it cost to raise from day old to slaughter… Those beef animals eat a lot of corn and finish them out is not cheap also keep in mind a Holstein/Angus Day old drop calf cost as of today 630.00 per head

They get Slaughtered @ 1375 lbs and 17 months of age with a daily feed cost of 3.62.

Also Feed, medicine and labor is a killer… plus $92 per head in interest theses days.

Now add butcher fee (we are right at $1000 for 1350 finished weight). Thennnnn we get to talk about infrastructure costs to raise these critters. Cold storage, transportation costs, marketing, insurance and on and on and on. I honestly don’t know of anyone getting rich doing this

 

[RVR SWPR]

Have you picked out names for them?

Priceless. If you ever banned from here,we all go. LoL

 

[Flyinbowtie]

Our half beef goes to the butcher in about 3 weeks. I gave up raising my own about 6 years ago. We've bought an animal from the Junior livestock auction at the fair every other year, and split it with friends. This year it simply got to where we could not afford it.
We have an ace in the hole, a guy who has had a ranch in the family for over 100 years and he is going to take care of us. family friend. Raises Angus cross. He has one for us.

Lets talk costs. My personal experience.

Steers need access to good water and well drained ground, and we buy irrigation water up here by the Miner's Inch. My father and I built the infrastructure to connect to the irrigation canal that runs through our place for this system 40 years ago. To replicate it would cost close to 15k with backhoe time.
The water, 2 inches, is about $980 per season, the season starts April 1st and ends October 15.
The steers arrive. I will defer to Joel and 1manshow for accurate prices today. Now, we had good pasture grass. We start them there. I changed sprinklers every 12 hours, and check their water trough every time I change sprinklers. Every day. Twice a day, sunrise, and after work.
If we had to leave someone had to change sprinklers and check the water.
We grain finish our steers. Most I ever had at one time was 3.
We didn't use cheap grain, I used high end steer finisher that looked and smelled so good you'd think about putting it in a bowl with some milk fer yerself.
Gotta have a weathertight/mouseproof/rat proof/snake proof shed for the grain. Not as simple as you think.
Once you start graining them and they convert over you feed twice a day, sunrise and the evening...and they watch for you, and if you is tardy with the food you'll hear about it. They are eating, drinking, crapping machines at this point. Check the water tank every time you feed...
And this is when you really start worrying about predators, four and two legged variety, and you worry every time you hear them bellow after dark.
Its like this for several months. You are married to those animals. You don't go away while you have them on the grain. Period.

Then, the grand day arrives and the guy with the big box, and a crane on his truck comes, and your work is done.
But not your expenses...he charges for the slaughter, and then off to the butcher of your choice.
There are a lot of them around here, and people are just as loyal to their butcher as...well...it is worse than car loyalty, LOL.
We've used the same shop for beef and another one for pork (he is a better sausage maker and smoked meats guy)...
We get our pork through Harlie, as you might guess, moving on..
Cut and wrap is not free. Custom Butchering is an art form IMHO.
So yeah, how much does it cost to raise a "cow"?
If you add up all the infrastructure, time, grass, grain, water, etc it takes to convert that big beast into beef in your freezer...well it ain't cheap.
It is rewarding tho, to know what you are eating and feeding others is good and safe.

If we had the ground and the time I'd do it again.

 

[Flyinbowtie]

Have you picked out names for them?

Every year.

T-Bone was popular.
So was Top Sirloin.
SOB one year.
Prime Rib.
My favorite...a big Angus/Charolais who wound up having a heck of a personality, his name was George Strait.
They'll never be another George...

 

[angiebaby]

Like @NicPaus mentioned probably about 350-500 mentioned earlier
2400.00 is what it cost to raise from day old to slaughter… Those beef animals eat a lot of corn and finish them out is not cheap also keep in mind a Holstein/Angus Day old drop calf cost as of today 630.00 per head

They get Slaughtered @ 1375 lbs and 17 months of age with a daily feed cost of 3.62.

Also Feed, medicine and labor is a killer… plus $92 per head in interest theses days.

Ok, I'm going to sound elitist here, but corn is the problem. Hogs eat corn (and anything else). Cattle eat grass. There can be a discussion about grass-finished or grain-finished, but the fact that people are eating beef that has been raised on Monsanto's GMO corn is one of the big problems with the health of our nation. And they charge you $60 for 3 steaks of GMO corn-fed beef.

 

[Flyinbowtie]

Angie is right.
A lot of feed lots run straight molasses dipped cob...not even real corn.,,just ground cob. The molasses makes them thirsty...and they drink more water, and water is heavy...
That cob, according to the Ag guys I know who test this kinda thing, has almost no nutritional value at all...
Good grass for most of their life, happy steer. Well drained grass.
And good water.
I like a min30-60 day finish on good Show Steer finisher, no gmo, no corn...expensive as hell, but you can taste the difference. More if I could afford it.
You ain't being elitist at all kiddo...
We haven't had store bought beef or pork in this house in a very long time

 

[infield]

I have cattle. Have bought beef at the grocery store for as long as I remember. Locker beef is expensive as well. Processing is expensive and you wind up with cuts you don't really like.
Very few people have the patience to feed one long enough to get the size like the packers process. I sell mine as 5 to 7 weights a little less than a year old at the sale barn. Sale barn culture is completely different than anything urban people would experience. You got order buyers, ranchers, killer cow buyers and everything in between.https://www.eldoradolivestock.com/
Here is a link to a good sale barn. There is one in most decent sized towns in the mid west. Some are absolutely huge. Like Dodge City, Pratt, La Junta, Woodward Ok, Joplin MO, West Plains, Harrison AR. I could go on. Cattle always move west in the supply chain.