How many pounds of meat will I get from my beef?​

We often get this question and it’s not always a simple answer. As custom processors our goal is to provide our customers with high quality and the most value for their money. Many factors come into play when calculating the final weight of meat after processing. For example, there are factors that add weight to the live animal weight such as: hide, horns, hooves, viscera/organs, pregnancy, mud and/or manure on the hide, gut fill, fat to muscle ratio, breed (grass fed vs. corn fed)

On average, a 1,000-pound steer will only weigh approximately 61% of its live weight once it makes it to the rail. This approximate 39% loss during the slaughter and dressing procedure is a result of the animal being bled and the hide, head, hooves, viscera, lungs and heart being removed. The remaining 61% is often referred to as the “Hanging Weight” or the weight “On the Rail”. But the loss doesn’t stop there. Once the carcass is on the rail it begins to leach moisture (shrink) which accounts for additional weight loss. This along with the fat and bone removed during the cutting account for an additional 18% loss. In summary, a steer weighing 1,000 pounds on the hoof will average around 430 pounds of retail cuts (steaks, roasts, ground beef, stew beef, etc.). -source: Oklahoma Department of Agriculture http://www.oda.state.ok.us

There are tools we can utilize as general guides to have a rough idea on the yield of your beef. We have provided a number of links to reliable sources below that can better assist you in understanding how to calculate the expected final product you may receive. We encourage our customers to review these sites prior to calling the locker with their carcass yield questions. As previously stated, this is not a simple question to answer and taking the time to answer all these concerns do take us from processing your product in a timely manner.

​​​Foraker | Carcass Yield and Subprimal Cutout Value of Beef, High- and Low-Yielding Beef × Dairy, and Dairy Steers | Meat and Muscle Biology

How Many Pounds of Meat Can We Expect From A Beef Animal? | UNL Beef | Nebraska

Custom Beef Processing: Expected Yields | Oklahoma State University

Carcass Beef Grades and Standards | Agricultural Marketing Service

PB1822-How-Much-Meat-to-Expect-from-a-Beef-Carcass.pdf

How much meat should a beef animal yield? – Livestock

Beef Grading | South Dakota State University