Once you have placed your order and made a $200 deposit we will call Four Star Meats (or the butcher of your choice). When the carcass is in their facility, they will give us the exact hanging weight. At this time, Four Star Meat Company (541-689-1350) will call you to ask how you would like your cuts (such as how much ground beef or sausage or how thick you would like your steaks). The beef will be dry-aged for up to 2 weeks and the pork, hams, and bacon will be smoked. Allow 2-3 weeks from butchering for pickup.

The customer pays for cutting, wrapping, and butchering fees. Actual weight of delivered meat product will be approximately 65% of the hanging weight.

Since you are purchasing a live animal, it is impossible for us to give a precise cost per pound of final product. However, the final cost can be estimated, as we do in the following examples.

An example of how side costs are calculated for grassfed beef:

Assume you purchase a steer with a "live weight" of 1000 pounds. After the head, viscera, hide, and blood are removed we are left with the "hanging weight" of the animal, which is approximately 60% of the total live weight. Deck Family Farm charges you by the pound based on the hanging weight. Assuming a hanging weight charge of $3/lb of 600 pounds, the total to pay to Deck Family Farm is $1800. Butchering charges and cutting and wrapping are paid directly to the processor. Assuming butchering charges of $50 per animal and approximately 45cents /lb for cutting, and wrapping, the overall butcher costs will be around $340. The final cost for the entire steer to you will be $2140 for 390 pounds of meat (there is some loss in weight at the butcher for de-boning and removing fat) for $5.48/pound. This price is about 20% less than our CSA prices for cut-meats and 40% less than our retail prices for cut meats. If you order a 1/2 or 1/4 side then all of the costs and amount of meat will be halved or quartered accordingly. Please note that the figures above vary 10-15% for each animal.

An example of how costs are calculated for our pastured pork:

Assume you purchase a hog with a "live weight" of 288 pounds. After the head, viscera, hide, and blood are removed we are left with the "hanging weight" of the animal, which is approximately 70% of the total live weight. Deck Family Farm charges you by the pound based on the hanging weight. Assuming a hanging weight charge of $3/lb for pork and a hanging weight of 200 pounds, the total to pay to Deck Family Farm is $600. Butchering charges and cutting, wrapping, and smoking are paid directly to the processor. Assuming butchering charges of $50 per animal and approximately 75cents /lb for smoking, cutting, and wrapping, the overall butcher costs will be $170. The final cost for the entire hog to you will be $770 for 140 pounds of meat (there is some loss in weight at the butcher for de-boning and removing fat) for $5.50/pound. If you order a half-side, you will receive about 70 pounds of meat (enough to fit on a two freezer shelves). Please note that the figures above vary 10-15% for each animal.