Beef Weights
HOW MUCH CUSTOM BEEF CAN YOU EXPECT IN YOUR FREEZER?
“TAKE HOME” weight is the weight of cuts that ultimately make it into your freezer. About 4% is water weight lost from hanging weight during the 10-21 day period that the carcass is hung. Hanging beef in a cooler for 10 - 21 days is recommended to improve tenderness. This process is called aging. This allows the enzymes in the meat to break down the proteins and improve eating quality. The process also allows the development of flavors associated with the aging process. Then about another 35% is lost during the cutting process. This amount is variable based on the amount of fat in the meat and the cuts that a customer requests. Higher fat means more loss as trim. Also, the more boneless cuts requested, the lower the final weight because bones weigh more than meat. The lower weight doesn’t mean that you are receiving less meat – rather, you are receiving fewer bones and fat.
When we talk about beef weights, there are 3 different ones of which customers should be aware of.
“LIVE” weight is what the animal weighed “on the hoof”, or when it was alive.
“HANGING” weight is the weight of the animal when it sent to the butcher shop to hang. It is basically the weight of beef and bones. This is the weight we base our per pound charges on for custom cut beef. The butcher also charges their cut/wrap fees based on this weight. The hanging weight is usually about 62% of the live weight due to the loss of blood, head, hide, hooves, viscera and organs. A 1,200 pound animal (live weight) will have a hanging weight of approximately 744 pounds.
1200 lbs (live weight) - 65% = 744 lbs (hanging weight) - 39% = 454 lbs (take home weight)