Butchering Beef & Pork - How much is lost?

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We have a mixed breed steer and in a few days will have some Hampshire pigs we'll fatten out. Here are my questions:

What percentage amount can I expect to lose on a Herford/Angus steer when processed at 800 - 1000 pounds, and

Same question on the pigs ... will butcher them at 250 pounds with approx 1.5" backfat ... how much meat can I expect to put in the freezer?

I don't know if that's enough information ... hope so. I look forward to your responses ... this forum is simply THE GREATEST!!!

Thanks

-- Phil McCoy (pemccoy@yahoo.com), July 17, 2001

Answers

ALOT! I think they say 20% with beef.

-- Patty {NY State} (fodfarms@slic.com), July 17, 2001.

Hi Phil:

Typically, you can expect roughly 45-60% "dress out" of useable meat from most of our four-legged friends, depending on their condition going into processing and how much fat you like on your meat. With pigs, it can be much higher, depending on whether you use the feet, heads, and assorted extras.

If you save the fat, you can make soap, candles, etc, so although you don't eat it, you CAN use it.

And, if you're into tanning hides (BACKWOODS HOME had a recent article in the May/June issue), you'll get that much more use out of your critters.

-- Anita Evangelista (evangel@atlascomm.net), July 17, 2001.


Speaking from memory, I think it was approximately 55% retained weight for beef - that is 45% waste. But the 55% included all the bone and fat that was included in the cuts dressed out, so of course you ended up eating less than that, although you'd pay for it in a butcher shop. I think I'd get more than that - I don't think yhey counted some of the stuff I like, which is variously counted as variety meats or offal. Falls within Anita's figures.

-- Don Armstrong (darmst@yahoo.com.au), July 17, 2001.

I know this is not to the point, but perhaps of interest anyway: I read in a small livestock book that there is less waste when butchering rabbit than any other animal, due mostly to the light bones I think. The rabbit also apparently converts feed to meat more efficiently than other animals we raise for meat; I don't know if any of this is true, not can I find the book right now to quote the title and author.

-- Elizabeth in E TX (kimprice@peoplescom.net), July 18, 2001.

I'm thinking it's about 50%. As for the fat on the pig, That can also be rendered into lard. I have done this and it is good and easy to do. I am guessing that the people on this message board are health concious and this is a tidbit I read somewhere. Lard is broken done by the body much quicker than shortening and vegetable oil. The only thing found in rendered lard is the fat and a bit of salt. After rendering i freeze it in 24 ounce freezer containers. The containers when emptied are cleaned and reused. Just an idea.

-- Barb (bralsteen@ez-net.com), July 18, 2001.


In commercial processing facilities they have a market for almost everything, including lips, jawls, glands, etc. Much of this in homebutchering is not used and becomes waste.

A 1,000 pound grade choice steer dresses out 61.5%. Fat, bone and other losses, accound for an additional 183 pounds. So, there would be some 432 pounds of sellable meat in this steer. Of that, only about 10% is what are considered to be price cuts, such as t-bones.

Lambs with an average of 105 pounds liveweight, would dress out to some 52 pounds, or 49.5%.

A 210 pound hog would produce about 150 pounds of wholesale cuts, of which 135 pounds would be retail cuts. Dressing percentage is about 68%.

Source: The Stockman's Handbook.

-- Ken S. in WC TN (scharabo@aol.com), July 18, 2001.


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