We produce the most tender and most flavorful grass-fed natural beef you will find. Not only better for you, but better tasting than any corn-fed beef. No corn, no hormones, no antibiotics, no nasty feedlots. Just our ranch, our hay, our grass and alfalfa, and a few of our neighbor's apples!


How To Buy

We are accepting orders now  for delivery to Portland on October 30th, 2015. If you are interested in being on our email "notice list" or wanting to place an order please contact us at jamesowenkelly@gmail.com

The Basics

We are a very small operation. Typically, we sell by quarter beef. We do not retail specific cuts of beef.
Our steers and heifers are fattened during the summer months when we have plenty of rich grass and alfalfa with cull apples in the fall. During this time we pre-sell each quarter - you can put your name on one with a $100 deposit. Cost is $4.70 per pound hanging weight. Each quarter is custom cut to your specifications. Usually, the beef is ready in late October. We deliver our frozen beef to Portland (or it can be picked up at Russells Custom Meats in John Day). We notify our customers long in advance about delivery day.

How Much Is A Quarter Beef?
Hanging weight varies significantly and starts around 160 lbs. 225 lbs is a big quarter. That is the weight of the quarter before aging and final butchering. What you get in actual frozen beef is significantly less, but figure that for a smaller animal it might be 100 to 110 pounds. (Figure your actual cost will likely be closer to $7. per pound.) This will vary depending on the animal size, the cuts you choose (for example, ordering short ribs will increase the final weight and packaged amount going into your freezer). You will also have the option to include organ meats or not. Assuming the animal is on the smaller side and you order fairly typical cuts, you would get:
16 lbs steak
28 lbs roast
40 lbs ground beef
16 lbs stew meat

In terms of volume, figure about 3-1/2 grocery bags full. It will fit in the top of a typical refrigerator/freezer. Many of our customers have bought small freezers that are available from Costco and other places for well under $200, and they are ideal.

A friend of ours recommended a pamphlet from the Extension Service of Iowa State University, called the "Beef and Pork Whole Animal Buying Guide." This little pamphlet is not just "juicy" and "meaty," but it is full of very useful information that will help you understand this process and help prepare you for working with the butcher. You can download a pdf version with this link:

https://store.extension.iastate.edu/FileDownload.ashx?FileID=1742