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Originally Posted by karne
 We do buy locally, and it is very expensive, no way around it. The meat we buy for the freezer has to last the season-once it's gone we have to wait for when the farmer is butchering/selling more. But, this is our choice.
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Originally Posted by velochic
Especially with meat, I've found the opposite to be true. We've averaged probably $2.25 per pound for beef over the years... locally raised, grass-fed, non-certified organic. I can't even buy ground chuck for that price, let alone steaks and roasts. Last year, I was able to get a side at a total cost (including processing) of $1.89/lb. If local is very expensive, I'd look for a different cattle farmer/rancher. Right now cattle on livestock markets are only about 85 cents per pound.
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Originally Posted by velochic
Especially with meat, I've found the opposite to be true. We've averaged probably $2.25 per pound for beef over the years... locally raised, grass-fed, non-certified organic. I can't even buy ground chuck for that price, let alone steaks and roasts. Last year, I was able to get a side at a total cost (including processing) of $1.89/lb. If local is very expensive, I'd look for a different cattle farmer/rancher. Right now cattle on livestock markets are only about 85 cents per pound.
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Originally Posted by A&A
There are more than two choices.....organic or Walmart.
As I mentioned, Costco (if you have one nearby and happen to have a membership) still has cheap hamburger, but it is tested more than Walmart hamburger is. |
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Originally Posted by mnnice
This has very much not been my experience. The vast majority of my household meat was processed at a local locker. The one main exception to that is the chicken we eat. We go to the farm and help the farmer butcher one weekend every summer
 . The locker employs just a few people (who all seem to like their jobs). My DH has had many conversations with the owner. I feel I can go and check out the locker just as I could check out the farm where my meat is raised. They also are highly skilled and get the order right every time. I also know the meat came from the animal I purchased not 100 cows all mixed together. Anyway all meat is not the processed the same way anymore than it is raised the same.And before I get branded as an elitist that pays $75 a pork chop. We paid about $1.25 per lbs for the last 1/2 of a hog we bought and they also take food stamps. There are other choices in the marketplace. |
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Originally Posted by annettemarie
I am glad that going to your local farmer, pointing out a bird or a pig or a cow, and then walking out with your meat at a reasonable price is a viable option for some people here. But I think assuming everyone can or should be able to do it is a bit of a stretch.
For one thing, around here you can only get a good price if you order in bulk. So to come up with $100-$250 at a time for meat can be a bit difficult when you're living paycheck to paycheck with bills to pay. Additionally, while I can believe cheap, local, organic, ethically-raised meat is easy to come by in some places, it's not that simple depending on where you live. I understand the ethical concerns, but I think if it was between feeding my kids or not feeding my kids, I'd feed my kids. I also understand the health and safety concerns, and would love to hear more about mitigating those if one has no other choice than to buy cheap boxstore meat. I'd also love to hear other practical, frugal alternatives. |
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Originally Posted by JTA Mom
But not everyone has a Costco. Or the $50 to put towards a membership once a year. Also, Costco ground meat, around here, is around $2.99/lb. Great price, considering they double test their meat. Still out of reach for a family barely making it, though. And regular grocery store meat is the same as Walmart meat. All are processed the same way.
And that is an excellent price! Unfortunately, I only see that price in a super store sale. As in, once a year, maybe. Around here the cheapest I've seen is $3/lb for a whole hog, conventionally raised. Otherwise we are talking $5lb+. Without processing fees. And it's great you have a local locker to do the slaughtering for you. We don't. As for getting the animal you picked, I didn't say they would mix it at the big slaughterhouse, just that the nasty stuff will go on even with your organic meat. They don't change knives or slaughtering practices just because it's organic. Thank you, AnnetteMarie! I was starting to think I was crazy or living in a crappy area with no options. I've looked and looked and looked for inexpensive organic meat. Even at buying the whole animal, it's STILL more costly than sale meat. I know I can get steaks for super cheap, but I never get steaks. What do you say to families that can only get the super cheap cuts of meat? Telling them, 'well, you are paying more per lb for ground meat, but less for your filet mignon' means nothing, since they don't get the filet mignon. Ami |
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Originally Posted by crunchy_mama
I think that would likely depend on the area as well. I have been searching for grassfed meat at a price I could afford for years now, this I am getting at $3.63 lb(final weight) is by far the cheapest I have found.
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They have the mindset that grain fed is better, and so, more expensive.
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Originally Posted by crunchy_mama
I think that would likely depend on the area as well. I have been searching for grassfed meat at a price I could afford for years now, this I am getting at $3.63 lb(final weight) is by far the cheapest I have found. The other 2 closest farms that sell 100% grassfed are around double that cost.
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Originally Posted by BetsyS
All that said, I still struggle coming up with the money for a side/whole beef and the extra freezer I'd need to store it, so we buy grocery store meat.
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Originally Posted by sunnmama
A freezer, a place to put it (garage? basement? storage room?), and the electricity to run it. And, in some areas, a generator to keep the freezer running in the event of likely power outage (in FL, we could easily lose power for a week if a hurricane came close by)--or else you are bbq-ing your year's stock of meat for the neighbors before it goes bad
Those are some significant start up costs! I do hope to be in the position to buy meat this way in the future, but it is not my reality atm. As it is, we limit meat. We eat a lot of beans and eggs. Meat is often added to those meals for flavor, but in small amts. |
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Originally Posted by mnnice
I am a meat as flavor gal too. We make pho with chicken or shrimp stock, but no actual chicken or shrimp. I'll also make white bean soup with ham stock and no actual ham
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Originally Posted by KariM
ETA: I just had another thought, too! Check around next year at your county fairs. We noticed this year that the market steers sold for under $2.00/lb. These are steers raised by FHA/4-H kids. Your end cost would be higher because you'd have the butchering fees. I raised steers as a kid and would often have 2-3 buyers go in and then they'd split the meat (because a full steer was too much for their families).
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Way off topic, but just so people know, those steers are rarely grass fed in my experience.|
Originally Posted by JTA Mom
See though, dh and I don't do well on a low meat diet. I've been vegetarian before (closer to vegan, since I'm allergic to dairy). Did NOT do well on it. I have issues with hypoglycemia and even 'good' carbs like steelcut oats, I just can't have alone. So while using meat as flavor might work for others, it doesn't work for me. One, I'd need to use obscene amounts of fat to try to counterbalance the carbs or just add some protein, like a couple eggs.
For some people, eating a grain/carb heavy diet isn't doable. I don't do low carb, but I need much more protein than someone else. Getting the shakes and brain fog just isn't a healthy way to live. Unfortunately, I'm not able to get the cheap source of protein in dairy (well, not cheese, but yogurt & such). Maybe that's why my forays into a low meat diet have been unsuccessful? Ami |
). The pho does have rice noodle made with white rice, but also mung bean shoots, often tofu, and greens plus enough hot sauce to make your nose run. The bean soup has ham broth, beans, onions, carrots, garlic, and greens too. Anyway both have plenty of protein just not from animals. Dh also makes a dish with sauted greens, lentils and veggies, and then a poached egg. It sound a bit strange, but it's a super good dish. The blog dishing up delights had a version I cut and pasted in here
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Originally Posted by velochic
We've averaged probably $2.25 per pound for beef over the years... locally raised, grass-fed, non-certified organic. .
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I learned a whole lot about our current food systems and the history that has brought them to current day. I highly recommend everyone read this book to educate oneself. Poor people, rich people, everyone. The author addresses poor people's needs more than any other author I have read thus far on the "food" topic.
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