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Retail Meat Sales Considerations and Pricing for Profit

Darlene Livingston and Matt LeRoux

Summary

Small meat processing facilities scaled to USDA processors increasing harvesting appointment availability for farmers.

The remaining stumbling block for farmers was properly pricing and marketing meats to ensure a profit. Meat pricing requires complex calculations that include feeds, facilities, land, labor, marketing expenses and sizable processing fees. Busy farmers chose easy pricing methods. Matching retail grocery stores prices which are not economies of scale, neighboring farmers or undercutting both. Neither achieved profitability or long-term farm viability.

This project addressed properly pricing meat cuts and improved marketing mindset encouraging farmers to confidently price meats for profit improving farm viability. Farmers were challenged to evaluate direct marketing against current marketing methods to determine the best option.

Meat pricing expert Matt LeRoux, Cornell University provided five presentations on the Cornell Meat Pricing Calculator to 135 farmer participants.

Charlotte Smith, 3 Cow Marketing shared marketing mindset tools with 228 farmers. Farmers gained confidence to increase prices and developing better customer relationships.

Meat Marketing Considerations booklet offered accurate requirements for direct marketing meat options and links to pricing tools and cutting and cooking information graphics. Demand provided need for a second edition.

Above and beyond.

Meat Pricing and Yield Calculator for Freezer Trade and Meat Pricing and Yield Calculator for Meat Cuts were developed in printed format filling a Plain Sect Community request.

Online and hard copy meat cut diagrams and preparation instructions were created for beef, lamb and pork. A solution for farmers lacking meat cut knowledge creating challenges with processors and customers.

Details

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