Our goal is to raise our cattle in the most humane way possible and supply beef which is healthier for you and your family. MEADOW MIST GRASS-FED ANGUS BEEF
We have finished Angus beef cattle for sale. Beef can be purchased in bulk by whole, half or quarter with a phone call. Individual cuts can be purchased from our retail store. We are open every Saturday from 9 AM to 1 PM. HOW DO WE RAISE OU
R ANIMALS? Our cattle are exclusively grass-fed. We feed them only high quality pasture eight months of the year and high quality hay during the winter. We never feed them grain or silage. Our animals are always allowed free range on pasture and have access to a barn for shelter in bad weather. We treat our animals humanely. Not only is humane treatment the right thing to do, but rough handling and long-distance trucking of live animals causes the release of stress hormones which makes meat tougher. That’s why we use a local butcher. We do not give our animals hormones or antibiotics to stimulate growth. However, our meat is not labeled organic. There are three principal reasons for this. First, the organic standards require an unharvested buffer between organic fields and neighboring non-organic fields, and we do not have the acreage to do this. Second, we treat our animals with medicine if they are sick, which we consider a part of humane treatment. We observe and double all waiting periods for the medicines we use. Third, organic farming is not necessarily sustainable farming, and our goal is sustainable farming. WHAT IS DIFFERENT ABOUT GRASS-FED BEEF? Most of us grew up on beef from animals that were finished on grain in a feedlot or in other confined conditions. Grass-fed beef is different; it is a premium product. Grass-fed beef is more flavorful than grain-fed beef. There are three main reasons for this. First, our cattle eat high quality feed of the type that the animals are built to eat – grass and clover pasture and hay. Second, our cattle grow at a natural, slow pace, which allows flavor to develop. Third, our animals get a lot more exercise than feed-lot animals. When we started, we worried that grass-fed would be tougher and have less marbling than grain-fed beef, but this isn’t the case! The premium cuts of our grass-fed beef are tender, and they taste great cooked on a grill or by other fast, high-heat, dry cooking methods. The tougher cuts melt in the mouth when cooked by slow, low-heat, moist cooking methods, such as barbecuing, smoking, braising, pot-roasting, stewing and slow-cooker. HOW IS OUR BEEF BUTCHERED, CUT AND DELIVERED? Minimal handling and transportation improve the quality of the beef, so we use a local butcher. Our retail beef is processed at North Mountain Butcher Shop just over Doubling Gap in Cumberland County, about 15 miles from the farm. Our bulk beef orders are processed at Kistler’s Butcher Shop in Loysville, one mile from the farm. When you buy a whole, half or quarter animal, you can tell the butcher exactly what you want, based on what you like to eat. There are many options, alternatives, and trade-offs. For example, more steak means fewer roasts. More stew meat means less hamburger. You can specify the fat content of hamburger. If you want meaty bones or marrow bones for soup or broth, or bones for a dog, you can ask for them. There are some specialty cuts, such as skirt steaks and hanger steaks, which end up as ground beef unless you specify otherwise. Other specialty cuts come out of more traditional cuts, so you have to choose. Ask your butcher to provide or withhold organ meats such as liver, kidneys and heart. Every butcher has a book or app to help you select the cuts you want. This is your chance to get exactly what you want, rather than just “the usual.”
All our beef is “dry-aged” in a cooler exposed to chilled, circulating air. This makes the beef tenderer and allows moisture to evaporate naturally. Unless labeled otherwise, all the commodity beef you buy in the store is “wet-aged” in vacuum packaging which prevents the loss of moisture (which translates to salable pounds of “meat”). Our butchers age beef for 10-14 days depending upon humidity. Although we can deliver beef without freezing by special order, most of our beef is delivered vacuum-packed and frozen right after it is cut. Freezing halts the natural deterioration of cut beef. Vacuum packing, if it is not damaged, prevents “freezer burn” during storage. Unlike supermarket beef, our beef does not sit in a plastic and foam wrapper getting staler every day. The USDA allows a supermarket to label beef “fresh” even if it has been frozen once. Thus, if you freeze supermarket beef at home, it is usually frozen twice, which makes it tougher and less juicy. It is better to freeze beef once, when newly-cut, and thaw it right before you cook it. We take pride in our cattle and welcome visits to see the conditions in which they are raised! CONTACT US:
Timothy B. Anderson and Karen A. Anderson
Meadow Mist Farm
880 Montour Road
Loysville, PA 17047
Mobile: 717.275.4989
Email: [email protected]
BUYING BEEF IN BULK
Call to check our current price for whole, half and quarter animals. We price our whole, half and quarter beef orders per pound of hanging weight (also called the dressed weight). This is the weight of the carcass after the hide, head, feet and inedible organs have been removed. We think hanging weight is the fairest way to price beef. All per-pound charges are based on hanging weight and we pay the butcher, except for special services. Butchers often charge extra for special services, such as making ground beef patties, sausages, chip steak and cube steak. If you want special services, you will have to pay the butcher the going rate for the services. A live 1300-pound Angus animal generally hangs around 800 pounds and produces around 560 pounds of cut and wrapped beef. The difference between hanging weight and cut weight is caused by two factors. First, about 4% is water weight lost during the 10-14 day dry-aging period. Second, a portion of the hanging carcass is removed and discarded during cutting. The amount discarded is variable based on two factors. One factor is the amount of fat in the meat, some of which is trimmed away and discarded. The other factor is the cuts that a customer requests. The more boneless cuts requested by the customer, the lower the final cut weight. (Note that the lower cut weight doesn’t mean that you are receiving less meat – just that you are receiving fewer bones). RETAIL SHOP
In 2018, we opened a retail shop on our farm where you can purchase individual cuts of beef. The meat is individually vacuum-packed and frozen by our USDA licensed butcher. The shop is located in the center of our farm, at the end of a quarter mile lane and past the farmhouse and barn. Come browse and buy your meat direct from the farm! PRICES FOR WHOLE AND HALF BEEF
Our prices for 2023 are $3.40 per pound of hanging weight for a whole animal, and $3.50 per pound of hanging weight for a half animal, and $3.60 per pound of hanging weight for a quarter animal.
2023 PRICES FOR RETAIL CUTS
This list includes the cuts we regularly stock, but some items sell out quickly! Not all cuts will be in stock at all times. STEAKS
Filet Mignon $16/lb. Ribeye $16/lb. Flank Steak $11/lb. New York Strip $11/lb. Flat Iron $8/lb. Sirloin $8/lb. Chuck Eye “Delmonico” $8/lb. Skirt Steak $8/lb. Hanging Tender “Butcher’s Cut” $8/lb. ROASTS
Standing or Prime Rib $16/lb. Eye of Round $8/lb. Chuck Eye $8/lb. Sirloin Tip Roast $8/lb. Top or Bottom Round $8/lb. Rump Roast $8/lb. Bone-in Chuck Roast $7/lb. Shoulder Roast $6/lb. OTHER
Brisket $8/lb. Rib Cap $8/lb. Chip Steak $8/lb. Stew/Kebab Cubes $8/lb. Patties $6/lb. Hamburger $6 /lb. Short Ribs $5/lb. Shank $5/lb. Oxtail $5/lb. Tongue, Heart, or Liver $2/lb. Bones $2/lb. Seasonally, we also sell chicken and duck eggs, which are available for $3.00/dozen.
