Freezer Beef Prices: How to Price Beef by Hanging Weight

By the XES Netting team — bale net-wrap manufacturer · Updated October 19, 2026 · ~25 min read

Freezer beef prices in a March 2026 AgTalk discussion ran $3.80 to $4 a pound of hanging weight for sellers in Wisconsin, Michigan and Illinois whose buyers paid the processor, and $4.50 to $5.25 for sellers in Minnesota and Ohio who included processing. USDA’s direct-to-consumer survey of grass-fed producers averaged $5.76 a pound for a half in the third quarter of 2026, processing extra. Hanging weight is the carcass on the rail, about 61% to 66% of a beef animal’s live weight by Michigan State University Extension’s estimate, and the packaged beef the buyer takes home is roughly two-thirds of that with mostly bone-in cuts and about half with boneless cuts. At 2026 cattle prices, the number a seller needs first is the break-even: at USDA’s August 2026 average of $2.34 a pound live for steers and heifers, a 1,300-pound steer that dresses 62% has to bring about $3.77 a pound hanging just to match selling it live.

That break-even has moved. In October 2022 a northeast Nebraska seller priced at the local dressed-cattle price plus 10 cents, about $2.40 a pound hanging, and in November 2023 a Nebraska Sandhills producer called $2.65 the local market; at 2026 cattle prices, both are well below what the same steer would bring at the sale barn. Buyers feel it too: the U.S. average retail price of all uncooked ground beef reached $7.06 a pound in September 2026, up about 6% from a year earlier (Bureau of Labor Statistics), and a south-central Minnesota seller wrote in March 2025 that buyers were cutting back now that a quarter takes $1,000 or more instead of $500. Freezer beef still sells, and the sellers quoted below stress settling the price, the paperwork and the customer’s expectations before the steer goes to the locker.

This guide is for cow-calf and backgrounding operations, small feeders and dairy-beef growers who sell, or are thinking about selling, beef by the whole, half or quarter. It covers live, hanging and take-home weight, what freezer beef sells for in 2026, the break-even against the sale barn, processing fees, the custom-exempt rules, deposits and cut sheets, finding buyers, and which cattle suit the trade. It is not legal, tax or food-safety advice: meat inspection, licensing and sales-tax rules vary by state, so check with your state department of agriculture before you sell. Our guide to custom cattle feeding rates covers what it costs to have someone else feed the steer.

XES makes bale net wrap, so we read these threads with the hay and feed bill in mind. We read 1,518 posts from 262 archived farm-forum discussions (256 on AgTalk and 6 on HayTalk) that mention freezer beef, hanging weight, locker beef or custom-exempt processing (249 of the discussions started in 2022 or later) and coded 856 reports from producers, buyers and other posters on prices, fees, yields, rules and customers. Then we checked the prices, yields and rules against USDA, the Code of Federal Regulations, Michigan State University Extension, the National Agricultural Law Center and the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Live, hanging and take-home weight

Three weights describe the same animal, and mixing them up is a source of buyer disputes in the threads. Live weight is the animal on the scale. Hanging weight, also called carcass or dressed weight, is what is left after slaughter, when the hide, head, feet and internal organs are removed; USDA’s direct-to-consumer survey reports prices on it, and so does nearly every seller in the price table below. Take-home or packaged weight is what goes into the buyer’s freezer after the carcass hangs, loses some moisture, and is cut, trimmed and deboned to the buyer’s order.

Michigan State University Extension’s Jeannine Schweihofer puts the average dressing percentage of beef animals at 63%, with a range of 61% to 66%; beef heifers average about 62% and dairy beef steers 56% to 61%, and dairy steers can yield another 10% less in retail cuts. From the carcass, MSU estimates 70% to 74% in mostly bone-in retail cuts for an average (Yield Grade 3) beef steer, or about 50% if every cut is boneless and closely trimmed; its worked tables use 68% for bone-in. One producer who has kept records on about 20 animals reports:

"I have kept records of live weight, hanging weight, and wrapped in paper weight on random animals from the last 20 or so. My numbers which have remained consistent are: hanging is 62-64% of live and wrapped take home is 60-63% of hanging."

— Mitchco, SW OH, November 2025 · AgTalk thread 1219062

A rule of thumb quoted in the threads, for example by sellers in Missouri (May 2023) and west-central Illinois (February 2024), is “60 and 60”: hanging weight about 60% of live, take-home about 60% of hanging, so roughly 36% of the live animal ends up in the freezer. The Missouri seller tells customers it is a very rough estimate, because the cut sheet can move the result more than they expect, and a South Texas producer who keeps bone-in steaks, roasts and ribs reported in February 2024 taking home just over 50% of live weight. The table applies MSU’s percentages to common finished weights.

Fat cuts both ways. A carcass needs enough cover to hang and age without drying out, but extra fat is trimmed off and paid for at the hanging-weight price:

"I just did a large 1520 lb angus steer..... got 230 lb hang weight on quarter. only gave 115 lbs of take home beef. that seems short to me. Butcher told me steer was a little fat and that is where waste is."

— timjohn, SE Wisconsin, January 2025 · AgTalk thread 1186099

"For the guys doing locker beef for individuals 21 days or more is fantastic. However, you must have the fat cover to keep the carcass from drying out."

— ICC, southeastern Idaho, April 2024 · AgTalk thread 1157942

Explain all three weights before the sale, in writing if you can. Sellers in the threads described buyers who expected the hanging weight to end up in the freezer:

"Most moms and even dads dont know what to expect and think hanging weight is close to actual lbs of meat weight"

— lawfarms, King City, Mo, February 2023 · AgTalk thread 1101730

What freezer beef sells for in 2026

There is no national freezer beef price, but USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service publishes a quarterly survey of direct-to-consumer grass-fed beef sales. The third-quarter 2026 report, released September 25 and based on 84 producers plus aggregated reports from North and South Carolina, gives the clearest public benchmark. It covers grass-fed beef only, so treat it as a benchmark for grass-fed sellers rather than a price for grain-finished beef.

The table below collects prices that producers reported in the threads from 2022 to 2026. Each is one seller’s price at the time, not a market quote, and the terms differ by portion and by who pays processing, so they are not directly comparable with USDA’s grass-fed averages above.

Two sellers’ posts show how individual prices moved. The Thumb of Michigan seller posted $3 a pound in August 2022 and $3.50 that October, $3.75 to $4 in 2023 and 2024, and in March 2026 said he had been at $3.75 for two years and was looking at $4 for the fall; the north-central Indiana seller, whose price includes processing, went from $3.20 in 2021 to $3.65 in 2022 and said in April 2023 that he needed $3.90. The highest hanging prices in the table, $5.50 to $7.50, came from the Carolinas, coastal Maine and the Texas Panhandle, and three of those five include processing. The Fort Ripley, Minnesota, seller also reported in March 2026 that an hour or more from him, prices of $5.50 to $6 start to appear. The Thumb seller explained his 2026 number this way:

"I'm looking strongly at $4 a pound hanging weight this fall. The way I figure it's close to $2.40 - $2.48 live weigh. BTW, I was at $3.75 for the last two years."

— r82230, Thumb of Michigan, March 2026 · AgTalk thread 1231577

For the buyer’s side, the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ September 2026 U.S. city averages give reference points, though not a matched basket: all uncooked ground beef $7.06 a pound, boneless USDA Choice chuck roast $9.19, all uncooked beef steaks $12.69 and boneless Choice sirloin steak $14.11.

The break-even against the sale barn

The cleanest way to price freezer beef is to start from what the same animal would bring live, then add a premium for the extra work and risk. Divide the live price by the dressing percentage to get the hanging price that only matches the sale barn:

For a 1,300-pound steer at 62% dressing (806 pounds hanging), selling live at $2.34 brings $3,042. As freezer beef with the buyer paying processing, the same steer brings $2,821 at $3.50 a pound hanging, $221 less than the sale barn; $3,224 at $4.00 ($182 more); $3,627 at $4.50 ($585 more); and $4,030 at $5.00 ($988 more). Those are gross differences, before your time selling it, the trips to the locker and the risk of a buyer backing out. Michigan State University’s freezer beef pricing spreadsheet (updated February 2026) runs the same comparison with its own example: a 1,300-pound steer, 62% dressing and an agreed $4.25 carcass price works out to $2.64 a pound live, against a $2.35 market. Sellers in the threads reached similar conclusions:

"Selling at $4/lb hanging wt with customer paying processing is basically the same as you'd get selling live at an auction. To make it worthwhile price should be at least $4.50/lb hanging imho. $5/lb makes it worth the trouble."

— Jim, Driftless SW Wisconsin, March 2026 · AgTalk thread 1231577

"I figure when I account for everything my "profit" on the freezer beef side was $58/head more than the sale barn"

— CS_307, Ohio, January 2025 · AgTalk thread 1188328

Some of the premium is real money a live sale would lose. A seller who prices off the auction report pointed out in January 2026 that a freezer steer avoids shrink and commission and makes a shorter haul; another in northwest Wisconsin said in March 2026 that a 15-minute drive to the locker, instead of a three-to-four-hour round trip to a sale yard, saves him about $150 of trucking. How big a premium to ask is where sellers disagree:

"The sale barn determines the market price for the beef, the premium added is paying for my time to deal with the freezer people."

— hinfarm, Amherst, WI, April 2024 · AgTalk thread 1154570

"We follow retail price, it’s not any harder than figuring hanging weight price. I couldn’t care less what the wholesale price is at the sale barn."

— Ralph52, Williamsport, IN, April 2024 · AgTalk thread 1154570

A south-central Minnesota seller put a number on it in October 2025: when the market turns, a freezer beef seller can typically command a premium of 60 cents to $1 a pound hanging. A northeast Iowa producer who quit selling freezer beef explained in September 2024 why the premium is harder to earn when fed cattle are high:

"It worked when fat cattle were bringing $.70 a pound at auction and not so much at $1.90."

— 17821x, NE Iowa, September 2024 · AgTalk thread 1172993

On the buyer’s side, the price per packaged pound depends on the hanging price, the processing bill and the take-home percentage. For half of an 806-pound carcass, with USDA’s average processing of $0.94 a pound and half of a $125 kill fee, the buyer’s cost per packaged pound works out as follows.

At $4 to $4.50 hanging, a half costs the buyer roughly $7.50 to $9.30 a packaged pound at 60% to 68% take-home. The BLS averages above are reference points, not a matched comparison, because a half includes everything from ground beef to steaks. Michigan State University’s February 2026 spreadsheet makes the comparison on its own assumptions (an 806-pound carcass at $4.25 a pound, $125 slaughter, $1 a pound processing and 68% take-home): $7.95 a packaged pound against $9.55 for Choice beef at retail, a saving of about 17%. Whether freezer beef is cheaper for a household depends on the yield, the cut mix, the quality and how much of the half it uses.

Processing fees and butcher dates

USDA’s third-quarter 2026 grass-fed survey puts processing paid by the consumer to the processor at $0.57 to $1.25 a pound of hanging weight (average $0.94), plus a slaughter fee of $100 to $150 a head (average $125). At those averages, an 806-pound carcass costs about $883 to process. Two producers’ bills show how the extras add up:

"processed a 750 lb 3 legged calf last month and with the $100 kill fee, $60 offal fee and $30 e coli fee the fixed costs really add up on top of the $1.20/lb hanging weight processing fee"

— Lb94, West Central Illinois, January 2026 · AgTalk thread 1224759

"I had 150# made into patties. Total bill was $1250 $3.66/lb of meat. The patties cost $200. Without the patties it would have been $2.85/lb."

— kstate90, North Central Kansas, April 2024 · AgTalk thread 1154570

Because the cutting order changes the bill so much, the buyer paid the processor directly in 10 of the 18 price reports in the table that say who pays, and sellers described buyers giving their own cutting instructions. A southeast Michigan seller explained why in October 2022:

"Buyer pays processing because there is many ways to have a steer cut up and wildly varying prices. You won't make a thing if your customer wants it all made into sausage and specialty cuts."

— Ohio, SE Michigan, October 2022 · AgTalk thread 1080465

Sellers who include processing in one all-in price, like the Fort Ripley, Minnesota, seller at $4.50 in March 2026, trade that risk for simplicity: the buyer knows the total before pickup. Either way, the choice of processor matters. A South Carolina seller wrote in February 2024 that he parted ways with a processor charging $1.35 a pound plus $150 in fees, close to $1.60 a pound on a 700-pound carcass, after yields on some large carcasses fell below 40%.

Booking the slot is the other half of processing. In October 2022 a Marengo, Iowa, seller wrote that he was two years out on locker spaces at three lockers, and a north-central Indiana seller wrote in January 2023 that a local butcher wanted a $70 deposit per appointment to hold 2024 slots. By June 2023 the wait had shortened for at least one seller:

"Local butcher went from 1-1.5 years out to a week."

— Crete, Badger State, June 2023 · AgTalk thread 1116998

By 2026 some sellers were booking far ahead again: in March 2026 the Fort Ripley, Minnesota, seller wrote that everything was booked in February for September kill dates, and a seller in the Bottom of the Mitten noted that a buyer who bought a steer at the sale barn instead would need a butcher date set up 6 to 12 months earlier. Demand moves the other way too: a south-central Minnesota seller reported in March 2025 that every butcher he had talked to had open slots as buyers pulled back.

Custom-exempt or inspected: the rules

Beef sold by the whole, half or quarter can be slaughtered and processed under the federal custom exemption. Under 9 CFR 303.1(a)(2), the federal inspection requirements for preparing meat do not apply to the custom slaughter of cattle “delivered by the owner thereof” when the meat is “exclusively for use, in the household of such owner, by him and members of his household and his nonpaying guests and employees.” The exemption covers inspection, not every rule: the custom operator must meet sanitation requirements, keep custom products separate from any meat it handles for sale, keep them “plainly marked ‘Not for Sale’” until they reach the owner, and record the names and addresses of the owners. Custom work can be done at a custom-exempt plant or inside an inspected plant.

How one animal gets several owners is where the rules get nuanced. In practice, as the National Agricultural Law Center’s Elizabeth Rumley described in November 2021, producers may sell portions of an animal, such as a quarter of a steer, to several consumers while it is still alive; the consumers become co-owners, and once the animal is completely sold the producer arranges transport to the processor. Each owner chooses how the animal is processed and pays the producer for the animal and the processor for the processing, and custom-exempt products may not be sold or donated. As of that article, the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) had never set by regulation how many owners one animal may have. Wyoming (2020), Colorado and Nebraska have passed laws defining “animal shares”; FSIS said in a 2017 letter to state inspection programs that herd-share arrangements of that kind are not permitted under the federal custom exemption, while USDA’s National Advisory Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection recommended in September 2021, in advice that is not binding, that collectively owned groups be allowed to own animals if records show every recipient was an owner before slaughter. Selling beef by the cut, the package or the box generally requires slaughter and processing under inspection: USDA-inspected meat can be sold across state lines, and state-inspected meat generally only within the state. Ask your state department of agriculture how these rules apply where you sell.

Producers describe the same split from the field:

"I can't speak for IN, but in MI you can not sell retail/individual cuts of meat without USDA certification. All of our beef and pork is slaughtered and butchered as custom exempt, sold by 1/4's, 1/2's, wholes."

— hinzhogs, SW MI, August 2024 · AgTalk thread 1170054

"Selling beef that is picked up by the customer at the processor, as most 1/4, 1/2 and wholes are, you do not need a license."

— Jim, Driftless SW Wisconsin, September 2025 · AgTalk thread 1215160

The same Wisconsin seller wrote that selling frozen beef by the cut or box there takes a license and an inspected processor, and in September 2025 sellers in King City, Missouri, and south-central Minnesota described sales tax, Department of Agriculture visits and licensing exemptions that differ by state; treat those as pointers to check locally, not as rules. Insurance is the other gap producers flag: the King City seller wrote in April 2023 that farm liability insurance does not cover people coming to the farm to buy retail, and in February 2026 recommended a retail-commerce rider on the farm policy. Records matter too. The custom rule requires the operator to record the owners’ names and addresses (9 CFR 303.1(b)(3)), and a Mercer County, Illinois, seller wrote in January 2025 that his buyers put the processing appointment in their own names, give the cutting instructions and pay the processor at pickup.

Deposits, cut sheets and expectations

Freezer beef asks a buyer to commit a large sum months ahead, and not everyone who says yes follows through. A southwest Michigan seller put the lesson this way:

"Don’t: Keep back 12 beef because you have enough “yeah, I’m interested” before getting firm commitments. About 50% of the folks you’ve talked to so far, will back out. Especially right after Christmas."

— hinzhogs, SW MI, November 2023 · AgTalk thread 1137966

USDA’s third-quarter 2026 grass-fed survey averaged deposits of $449 on a half and $262 on a quarter. Producers reported a wide spread, from $100 a quarter and $200 a half in west-central Illinois in April 2023 to much larger down payments:

"That being said this is the second year I’ve charged a down payment, $750 for half and $1500 for a whole.. cheap insurance."

— centralmnangus, Ft. Ripley, MN, March 2026 · AgTalk thread 1231577

Some sellers avoid weight arguments entirely by selling a share at a flat price:

"Last yr we just sold em by the head too many people complain about hanging weight and how much actual meat they get so I went to a flat per head price. Was $1800 last fall. Pry $2k this yr. Usually around 1100 lbs."

— ahay68979, Saronville NE, September 2023 · AgTalk thread 1127798

The cut sheet is the other source of surprises. A half is a whole set of cuts, not a pile of steaks, and buyers who have never filled one in need help:

"Wait till somebody wants to buy a quarter or half and they say they want it cut ALL in to steaks."

— born_in_ad1, ESW ND, October 2022 · AgTalk thread 1080551

Freezer space is the third. MSU’s rule is one cubic foot of freezer for every 35 to 40 pounds of packaged beef, so a half with about 275 pounds of bone-in cuts needs about 7 to 8 cubic feet. Put the weights, the cut sheet, the freezer space and the payment schedule in a one-page sheet before the buyer commits:

"But how is a first time buyer to know this? It needs to be explained to them BEFORE the sale and if it's not that's the seller's fault"

— WeatherBug, Bottom of the Mitten, November 2025 · AgTalk thread 1219062

Finding buyers at $1,000 a quarter

Sellers reported that high cattle prices made freezer beef harder to sell even as store prices rose, because the buyer writes one large check instead of several small ones:

"I’m at 3.35 and sold 4 so far when I usually sell 10 by now. Costumer’s are not liking to pay almost 4 grand for a beef."

— s205, Fayette Co, Iowa, January 2025 · AgTalk thread 1188328

"Every butcher I have talked to is slow with several slots open. The biggest holdback seems to be money;when it takes $1000+/qtr vs $500 cunsumers cut back."

— MiradaAcres, SC Minnesota, March 2025 · AgTalk thread 1194647

The sellers quoted below described word of mouth, samplers and buyers who live away from cattle country. Some let regular customers pay over time; a Mercer County, Illinois, seller wrote in May 2025 that quite a few customers pay at tax time, and that some landlords want beef as part of the cash rent.

"I sell between 15-20 head / year and most come from 3-4 hours away. my sales are 99% by word of mouth."

— Kickapoogian, Soldiers Grove, WI, February 2024 · AgTalk thread 1148043

"I don't think I've ever gave away a sampler package and they didn't buy at least a 1/4. Be confident in your product!"

— WeatherBug, Bottom of the Mitten, March 2026 · AgTalk thread 1231577

"You don’t sell freezer beef to people who live where there are cows.

You sell it to people who live where there are not cows."

— Paint, SW Ohio, April 2023 · AgTalk thread 1107633

Online selling has its own traps: a north-central Indiana seller wrote in January 2023 that Facebook Marketplace pulled his ads whenever they showed a cow or mentioned freezer beef, and another seller complained in November 2023 about “pop up” sellers there offering beef cheap. A Nebraska Sandhills producer described strong local competition in November 2023: “everybody and their brother has freezer beef for sale.”

Which cattle make good freezer beef

Freezer beef can also pay on cattle the sale barn discounts. A west-central Illinois feeder wrote in February 2023 that he buys one-eyed, frostbitten and red or colored calves as singles and finishes them for the locker; a Driftless southwest Wisconsin seller wrote that month that selling direct spares his Herefords the discount for cattle that are not black; and a Marengo, Iowa, seller wrote in October 2022 that heifers that do not make his replacement cut are fed and butchered. Open heifers found at a fall preg check are another candidate; a Manitoba producer suggested in October 2022 finishing the opens for direct sale. Buyers do not see the hide, and sellers in northwest Iowa (August and December 2022) and central North Dakota (March 2023) described Jersey, Holstein and Brown Swiss-cross freezer beef that sold well and ate well. The trade-off is yield: MSU puts dairy beef steers at 56% to 61% dressing, and a seller wrote in December 2022 that Jersey and Longhorn crosses ate well but turned out poorly and could finish light.

How long to feed depends on the cattle and the target. A southeast Wisconsin feeder wrote in March 2023 that his nutritionist recommends 100 to 130 days of full grain before the kill date; a North Central Texas producer suggested in October 2022 about 150 days on feed to roughly 1,400 pounds for calves started at 750 to 800; and a southeast Minnesota producer reported in April 2023 that calves turned onto self-feeders at 700 to 800 pounds finish around 1,350 pounds at 13 months, after 180 to 200 days on feed. Working backward from the kill date sets the ration: a seller in Michigan’s Thumb explained in August 2023 that taking an 850-pound steer to 1,350 pounds in 165 days requires about 3 pounds of gain a day. For the feed itself, our guides to backgrounding calves, distillers grains, soybean hulls and corn silage cover the ration, and how much hay a cow eats helps size the hay. Two cautions from the threads: very fat cattle lose more to trim, as the January 2025 quarter above showed, and sellers disagreed about using injured or older cows for anything but ground beef, so discuss the animal and its use with your processor and veterinarian before you sell it.

Frequently asked questions

How much is freezer beef per pound?

In a March 2026 AgTalk discussion, sellers in Wisconsin, Michigan and Illinois asked $3.80 to $4 a pound of hanging weight with the buyer paying processing, and sellers in Minnesota and Ohio $4.50 and $5.25 with processing included. USDA’s third-quarter 2026 grass-fed survey averaged $5.76 a pound hanging for a half, processing extra, and $12.39 a pound of packaged beef.

What does hanging weight mean?

Hanging weight is the weight of the carcass after slaughter, once the hide, head, feet and organs are removed, and before it is cut and trimmed. Michigan State University Extension puts it at 61% to 66% of live weight for beef cattle. Buyers take home roughly two-thirds of it with mostly bone-in cuts, about half if everything is boneless.

How much meat do you get from a half a beef?

A 1,300-pound steer that dresses 63% hangs about 820 pounds, so a half is about 410 pounds hanging. With mostly bone-in cuts, Michigan State University estimates about 68% of that, about 280 pounds packaged; with all boneless cuts, about 205 pounds. Plan on 7 to 8 cubic feet of freezer space.

Can I sell freezer beef without USDA inspection?

The federal custom exemption covers slaughter and processing of an animal delivered by its owner, for the owner’s household, with the meat marked “Not for Sale.” Producers may sell a live animal or shares before slaughter, but how many co-owners are allowed is unsettled and state laws differ. Beef sold by the cut generally needs inspected slaughter and processing.

Is freezer beef cheaper than buying beef at the store?

It can be, depending on yield, cut mix and use. Michigan State University’s February 2026 example, an 806-pound carcass at $4.25 a pound plus slaughter and processing, with 68% take-home, works out to $7.95 a packaged pound against $9.55 for Choice beef at retail, about 17% less. Boneless cutting means fewer pounds and a higher cost per pound.

The bottom line on freezer beef prices

Freezer beef prices should start from the cattle market, not from last year’s price list. Divide the live price by your dressing percentage to find the break-even hanging price, about $3.77 a pound at USDA’s August 2026 steer and heifer average, then add a premium that pays for your time, your trips to the locker and the risk of a buyer backing out. In March 2026, sellers in Wisconsin, Michigan and Illinois were at $3.80 to $4 a pound hanging with the buyer paying processing, and sellers in Minnesota and Ohio at $4.50 and $5.25 with processing included. Book butcher dates early, collect a deposit, explain live, hanging and take-home weight before the sale, and check how your state applies the custom-exempt and inspection rules before you sell.

If your freezer steers are finished on hay and grain, the hay you bale this summer is part of what next year’s beef costs you. XES Extreme bale net wrap was tested by DLG (Report 7439), which rated its edge-to-edge bale coverage as good in practical use. For the feeding side of finishing cattle at home, see our guide to custom cattle feeding rates and weaning calves.

Research note: We read 1,518 posts from 262 archived farm-forum discussions (256 on AgTalk and 6 on HayTalk) that mention freezer beef, hanging weight, locker beef or custom-exempt processing (the matching posts and the posts on either side; 202 discussions had relevant material; 249 discussions started in 2022 or later; posts from July 2014 to May 2026) and coded 856 reports from producers, buyers and other posters. We checked them in October 2026 against the sources linked below. Producer prices, fees and yields are what individual producers reported at the time and, where stated, the place given; they are examples, not market data or recommendations. Producer statements about state licensing, sales tax and insurance are reported as producer experience, not verified rules. Figures marked as XES arithmetic use the assumptions stated with them. This page is general information, not legal, tax or food-safety advice. Sources: USDA Agricultural Marketing Service, National Grass Fed Beef Report (Quarterly), report for 2026 quarter 3 (September 25, 2026); Michigan State University Extension, How much to expect when buying freezer beef: Part One (Jeannine P. Schweihofer, May 21, 2020); Michigan State University Extension, Grain-Fed Freezer Beef Pricing Spreadsheet (updated February 2026); Code of Federal Regulations, 9 CFR 303.1, Exemptions; National Agricultural Law Center, “Custom Exempt” Slaughter: The Exception, or the Rule? (Elizabeth Rumley, November 19, 2021); USDA NASS, Agricultural Prices (September 29, 2026; August 2026 prices received); U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, CPI average price data (series APU0000FC1101, APU0000FC3101, APU0000703213 and APU0000703613, September 2026).

Featured photograph: Remote Grading Pilot for Beef, USDA Agricultural Marketing Service, photo by Rene Carranza, 2023, public domain (work of the U.S. Department of Agriculture), via Wikimedia Commons. A co-owner of Mountain Steer Meat Company in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, photographs a beef carcass among sides hanging in the cooler. Image unchanged apart from display resizing.