It’s Better For The Animals, Better For The Land, And Better For You
(Just want to know what you get with your purchase? Go here)
Our beef comes from quality yearlings that arrive on our farm from just a few miles away. They aren’t shipped (and stressed) over long distances. Once here, they live comfortable, wholesome and content lives in the most natural environment we can provide. We simply herd our cows by walking among them and gently leading them to new pasture every day, providing fresh water, allowing them to graze in the open fields where they eat what their digestive tracts are designed for -- in harmony with our pastureland. We believe this type of life helps to produce better beef, both in taste and quality.
Locally-Sourced & Treated With Care
So, when our customers purchase a quarter, half, or whole cow, they're buying rights to a live animal (or a portion of it), and in so doing, contracting us to raise that cow, fattening it up, and caring for it so it produces the most nutritious and flavorful beef possible. We, at Abraham’s Table Farm, grow healthy, natural, chemical-free food. And that makes our philosophy pretty simple – raise our animals with the greatest of care in a completely natural setting, using sustainable, free-range, rotational grazing practices. No added growth hormones. No GMOs. No antibiotics. Ever.
The Failure Of Feed Lots
This is diametrically opposite to what happens with beef cows in the commercial food industry. There, thousands of cows are routinely raised in crowded and unhealthy feed lots, often living knee deep in manure. They are given potentially dangerous growth hormones, fed an unnatural and almost exclusive diet of corn products, and are pumped full of antibiotics and other preventative medicines because of their infectious environment. The result is that their weight gain is sped up, but the meat lacks key nutrients and is the equivalent to flab. From these massive feed lots, they are shipped – sometimes hundreds of miles – to industrial slaughterhouses which process up to 25,000 cattle each day. Their lives are stressful and unhealthy from beginning to end. No one sees. No one cares. Just some dirty flesh being pushed through the system.
Naturally Raised
Not so with our cows. Not only do we raise them with the greatest of care, but our practice of regenerative farming mean we recognize that they can play and important role in the pastures and fields. As they move from pasture to pasture, eating and digesting their natural diet, they are also giving back to the soil by replenishing it with nutrients, which in turn improves the quality of the grass that grows back. They heal the land. Their specific qualities as majestic fertilizing beasts are seen and valued and put to use doing important work. They become incredibly important to the life of us all.
Humane Treatment
And finally, we avoid stressing our animals even in their last days. Once the cattle reach a certain age, they are gently transported just a few miles to our small scale local butcher. This limits stress that may otherwise be caused by transporting them hundreds of miles. The small scale butcher means there is no crowding, no waiting, and humans are in relationship with the animal to the end. Pasture-raised and grass-fed from the beginning to the end – it’s about as natural as it gets.
Great Taste & Good For You
The result: top-quality grass-fed beef that is ultra nutritious-- loaded with minerals, vitamins, antioxidants, heart-healthy Omega-3s and good fats – and every bite packed with flavor and nutrition.
So … Which Quarter Of The Cow Do You Get?
Most people know that there are dozens of “cuts of beef.” Roasts. Tenderloins. Short ribs. Filets. Porterhouse. T-Bone. And even variations depending on length or thickness of the cuts.
So when we offer our customers a quarter, half or a whole cow, what do you actually get?
The answer is simple … with a little explanation. Every cow we send to the butcher produces – after removing the head, hide, unwanted bones and organs -- about 600 lbs. of carcass. So, if you buy a whole cow, that's what you're paying for. Once more bones, cartilage, and all the other unusable bits are removed, that whole cow will yield approx. 400 lbs. of take home meat! If you buy half a cow, you'll take home close to 200 lbs. of meat, and a quarter cow ends up being around 100 lbs. of meat. The math is pretty easy. Two families could even work out a way to split the costs of a quarter cow.
As the season winds down and we approach the butcher time, Joel will call you personally to work out the details about your preferred cuts of meat. He will help you work out how many of each cut you can get, and also how you want it packaged all based on your particular eating habits. For example, bigger families may want ground beef in bigger segments (2-lb packages). Some families want more steaks. Some love roasts. There are even options of getting the tongue or heart, the ox tail or even packages of fat to render. Some request bones for their dogs!
Once you have worked out your “cut sheet,” that is given to the butcher. After processing, you'll pay the butcher for his services and we will deliver your beef directly to you--cut and packaged exactly how you want it! (make sure your freezer is ready!)
Butchering & Delivery Schedule
The butchering dates have already been set (this must be almost a year in advance). The cows will be delivered to the butcher in mid-November, and after the initial butchering, the sides of beef hang in a freezer to age properly. The final cuts are packaged and frozen for delivery to each customer early December.
If you have any questions, or need any clarification, just call or email us and we will be happy to get back to you – but do it soon as we only have a few more cows available!
Sleek and shiny cows stretching in the sun after a gentle rain!
