Reserve your beef
Natural Angus Beef for $7.27 per pound hanging weight (about $10 per pound of meat, which is comparable to current store prices especially when considering that the beef is raised according to organic principles and grassfed on pasture-also remember that food is expected to go up 25% this year so lock in your price now!!!).
No implants and no antibiotics. Pastured, free-range animals
Selling quarters, sides, or whole beefs only.
Listen to Michael Pollan's interview on NPR's Fresh Air. "An informative and very fair look at the Industrial beef process."
To help you decide how you want your beef cut, go to the Beef Cutting Questionnaire
What is "Natural Young Angus Beef"?
Natural Young Angus Beef comes from yearlings that weigh about 750 to 950 pounds as compared to Industrial feedlot steers which weigh about 1200 pounds. "Natural Beef" is from animals that have received no antibiotics in their feed and have no growth implants. In contrast, almost all beef that you buy in the grocery stores comes from feedlots where the feed is "medicated" with antibiotics and the animals receive estrogen growth implants. "Natural Beef" is also primarily forage-raised beef (http://eatwild.com), high in healthy Omega-3 fatty acids. Angus is the name of the breed – a black English breed renowned for its beef quality.
The animals are raised on pastures and not in the confined feedlots/industrial systems that provide most American beef (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/meat/industrial).
Is Flip Flop Ranch Natural Young Angus Beef organic?
Flip Flop Ranch beef would qualify as organic, but we do not have certification.
What does Natural Young Angus Beef look like and taste like?
The beef from these young free-range animals is generally leaner than the USDA grade "Choice" in the Supermarket. Because the animals are younger and smaller in size than 1200 pound industrial steers, cuts like steaks are also smaller (same thickness but smaller "area" or diameter). Fat in forage fed animals is higher in healthy Omega-3 fatty acids. The flavor of forage fed beef is like the idea of "terroir" in wine (the flavor of the earth). Many people like it better than the exclusively grain fed taste of industrial beef which is uniform and bland.
For a good comparison between forage fed and corn fed beef go to the PBS Frontline Modern Meat web site.
How much will the beef cost me and how can I compare the Hollin price with that of others?
We estimate a price of $10 per pound. This is our price estimate for the beef you take home. This price is for all "cuts" -- T-bone steaks, rib steaks, roasts, hamburger, organs etc -- and includes all slaughter and processing costs.
IMPORTANT TO NOTE. Our price is for the "cut weight" --the weight after the beef has dry aged and the butcher has cut out the fat and bones, packaged and frozen it and the price Includes all slaughter cost. Cut weight is the beef you actually take home. Most farms sell by the hanging or pre cut weight and slaughter is extra. We calculate about a 25% loss from hanging to cut weight. Bear in mind that this estimate is for comparison with supermarket prices. It will vary depending on how you cut your meat.
What kind of cuts do I get? What is the percentage of steaks and hamburger?
Here are percentages based on the way I cut my beef. These differ with every individual animal, and would change depending on how you cut your beef.
* Steaks (Rib, T-bone, Porterhouse, Sirloin, Flank) about 19%.
* Roasts (Chuck, Arm, Sirloin Tip) about 17%
* Round cuts (Eye Roast, Top Round Steaks, Bottom Round) about 9%
* Hamburger (depends on how lean or fat) about 45%.
* Miscellaneous (Short Ribs, Tongue, Liver, etc) about 10%
Our cutting questionnaire with suggestions on how to order and cut your beef .
The various cuts and where they come from on a side of beef.
For information about these cuts and how to cook them.
Download the Ohio State Extension service fact sheet Buying Beef for the Freezer .
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Will I get raw meaty bones and other treats for my pets?
Yes. Let us know and we can have bones included for your pets. Raw meaty bones are advocated in a pet diet championed by veterinarian Tom Lonsdale. Organs like liver, kidneys, and heart also make healthy treats for dogs and cats. Check out these items (and prices!) from American Dog Treats. Two books on natural products for pets are "Raw Dog Food Book" and "Natural Nutrition for Dogs and Cats: The Ultimate Diet."
How much or how little beef can I order?
Customers may order a whole, half, or quarter. On their own, some customers have "cow pooled" and bought a whole or a half beef with friends and neighbors and divided it among themselves.
How much beef in a whole, a side (half) or quarter?
Individual animals vary but our estimate on a young beef weighing 1000 on the hoof (live weight), is 400 pounds in a whole, 200 pounds in a side, 100 pounds in a quarter (a quarter is not the front or back of a side, but an equally divided side or half). Remember that this is an average. It will vary with the amount of trimming you require. Animals also vary in size and yield. Some people will get a little more and others a little less.
Do I need a freezer?
Yes, or at least a large refrigerator freezer section. The meat is vacuum packed in one to three pound frozen packages. A quarter of a young beef takes up about 3 cubic feet. A 5 cubic foot freezer costs about $295 at Costco.com and a little more at Sears.com. You will need to bring your own boxes to the ranch when you pick up. Vacuum packed beef will last several years in a freezer.
How do I pay?
To keep expenses down, we use a program where you buy the live animal from Flip Flop Ranch and pay the custom meats butcherer to slaughter and package it in your name. Here is how is works:
You will receive two bills. One from us at Flip Flop Ranch for the on-the-hoof or "live" weight price. (We interpolate the live weight based on a standard formula that live weight is certain percentage times the "dress" or "hanging"weight. "Dress weight" is the weight of the carcass after the hide, head, guts, etc have been removed and the carcass is hot (before dry aging).
The other bill is from the custom butcherer for slaughter, dressing, cutting and packaging.
For example:
Let’s say that you ordered a quarter beef and the live weight of your animal was 1000 pounds. The hanging/dress weight of the whole would be about 550 pounds and the final "cut" weight (after fat and bones are trimmed during packaging) would be about 400 pounds. Your quarter would be about 100 pounds.
You would pay Flip Flop Ranch $381 for your quarter beef. You would pay Gore Custom Meats about $100 for slaughter, aging, cutting, and vacuum packaging. Your total combined cost would be $1000 for 100 pounds of beef or about $10.00 per pound.
We require a $300 deposit per quarter. We accept MC or Visa. You can make your deposit online above.
We will send you a monthly request of $100 for payment until your full balance is paid.
Can I visit the farm and see the animals?
We welcome visitors. Please call or e-mail.
Flip Flop Ranch Natural Angus beef is humanely raised and humanely slaughtered. Buyers pick up at the slaughter house, inspect the plant, and get to meet the people who kill and cut their beef. The animals are rotationally grazed following the grass fed methods popularized by Joel Salatin of Polyface Farm near Swoope, Virginia.