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Feeding the animals gold

2K views 24 replies 12 participants last post by  happyhound 
#1 ·
How else can you explain the hike in food. It was close to a year before I was able to go into a food store and the prices hit me like a brick. Kraft cheese at bjs now over $11 and the price of beef. That same pack of chop meat paid little over $10 is now $20. Steak packs going over $30 and your classer cuts packs $50, $60 and up. I haven't heard the cows striking for more money, might forget lamb. Geez my mom used to get a leg of lamb as big as a cows leg now they are size of a small roast. Foodsaver have gotten as important in the kitchen as fridge and stove. How do you save money when sales aren't even sale's anymore
 
#2 ·
No one venting over the price of beef, you print your own money. Not only prices but the down sizing of the packages. When I was a kid everyone boycot beef because it jumped 10 cents a lb, now over $5 dollars and rising. They used to worry about making cows bigger so everyone could have something to eat, now its lower their numbers to raise the prices. What is this world coming to :(

Why is leather jackets so expensive, they throw away the skin of all the animals slathered for food.
 
#3 ·
Beef prices are not that bad, yes they have risen, some cuts are ridiculous but if you watch the sales there are good buys to be had.

My little market has decent prices on good quality Choice meats, this NY was fork tender, this week Rib Steaks are on sale for $7.99

Mind you I'm not spending $20 a night on steaks, there's plenty of budget stretchers during the week.



 
#4 ·
You must be a lot younger than me if you think $7.99 a lbs is good. I bought a t-bone steak in PA for little over $3, must have been before 2005. Now that same steak would run over $10. There was a time when price rated lower than quality and enough for everyone. Why raise the price so few can afford it, not worth taking the animals lives besides cattlemen to farmers ard all subsidized by the government. No way milk should be close to $5 gallon.
 
#5 ·
Corn does equal gold. Prices of meat tend to mirror the  price of the feed. Corn was at a record level of  $6.94 per bushel in 2012. It has fallen to $ 3.64 in 2014. But it's still higher than it ever was before 2008.

Yet beef was $76.58 $/live cwt in 2012 and rose to $104.13 $/live cwt in 2014. I'm sure some economist can explain this has something to do with futures, change in ag policy, lowered production or other cost factors.

My daughter and I buy hogs from a local producer who transport it to the locker to butcher it. Most of the cost is in the butchering. I assume this holds true for beef. Hope to split a steer with a couple of friends soon. 

In Iowa, I pay $2.58 a gallon for skim at Aldis. At Walmart, I think the store brand is around $4.
 
#7 ·
It's not just feed, either. Just look at fuel costs. Shipping the beef is certainly far more costly than it was a few years ago and that winds up on the price tag too.

Additionally, foreign markets have seen a huge increase in demand for animal protein. As more nations move into "first world" status what had been westernized luxury items or symbols of wealth are more sought after (and can be afforded). As goes Scotch, so goes beef.

Our own consumption of Beef is changing too, remember thrift cuts? I can't think of any "butchers cut" that hasn't been put on the publics radar in the last few years. I was communicating with a former boss of mine and she was saying that they are pretty close to loosing money on brisket sales (bbq joint) because the price of the meat has shot up so much so fast.
 
#12 ·
Had a 12oz rib steak the other night.. cost me $2.44... grass fed organic beef. I buy 1/4 of beef each year. Looking to buy 1/2 hog soon and some local farm raised chickens. Lettuce today was pitiful, 2 tiny heads of romaine were $1.78 each and I do mean tiny... like half normal size.
 
#14 ·
I just paid $9 /lb for ground bison! I swear 20% of the weight was water. Unbelievable. Bone in Rib-eye $9.99, Tri-tip $8.99, Chicken $2.99 etc. I also buy half hogs, duck, goat & lamb/mutton from local sources. I trade slaughtering/butchering services for a lot of it. Of course I live in an agricultural region of central California, in a small town where co-operation is easily found. For example I prune a friends small fruit orchard 1x per year. In exchange I receive 1 dozen fresh eggs every Monday for a year. Takes me 2-4 hours to do the job. Win-win. Makes that Rib-eye a bit easier to swallow...
 
#16 ·
For the home cook you can save a lot by shopping at the right places Example a German Company called Aldee  is opening up all over the US Most of their products are the same and in fact some better  then national brands. Walmart is still 12 to 24% cheaper then most supermarkets. Costco is very good .If you want to go to a classy market and have them carry your groceries or wheel your cart out, you pay for that. Learn what you can do with different cts of meat. . I bought chicken thighs this week fop . 97 a pound  spare ribs $1.77  pound  pork loin 1.39 pound , bacon by one get one free $4.79 for 2lbs  milk 1/2 gal 1.69 gal 2.89. whole chickens (frosted) .89 lb.  JUST BUY RIGHT and use coupons when you can
 
#17 ·
I prefer to shop in smaller markets whenever possible. I'm not a fan of big discount stores like Aldi/TraderJoes or Walmart. Costco is decent though. 

I'd rather pay a little more and eat a little less, but better quality. I have friends who always go to the absolute cheapest place, buy way too much cheap meat, and throw away half of what they buy. I find that disgusting on so many levels. 
 
#18 · (Edited)
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I could never buy a live animal just to have it bunched. With all the meat already packaged just doesn't seam right. I heard in europ they eat animal that have passed away of natural causes, not young animals put to death, seams like a long wait for a burger. What happens to all that meat isn't sold, waste to keep price so high that most end up garbage. Greed!

I hear what you say about local markets, here on long island a market called Best Yet is best place to buy steaks. They also have good prices on chicken breast and fresh vegetables.
 
#20 ·
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I could never buy a live animal just to have it bunched. With all the meat already packaged just doesn't seam right. I heard in europ they eat animal that have passed away of natural causes, not young animals put to death, seams like a long wait for a burger. What happens to all that meat isn't sold, waste to keep price so high that most end up garbage. Greed!

Everyone is entitled to their opinion so here is mine.
Never in my wildest dreams would I think to butcher and feed my family an animal that has dropped dead (natural causes or not).
It is not clean and most likely the meat ( which starts decaying immediately ) tastes awful as the animal has to be bled immediately upon demise.
I am sure that this is a practice in some cultures somewhere but Europe ?

People have been raising animals to butcher since forever.
I am sure this practice is not detrimental to the sales at the meat markets.

mimi
 
#21 ·
If I don't buy that live animal and have it butchered it would be sold to the packer and butchered. The amount of meat offered for sale hasn't changed. All I've done is cut out the middle men. This way I know who and how it was raised and cared for. It was transported a couple of miles instead of crammed in a semi for a long haul. I know who did the processing and can inspect the facility.  It treats it's employees well. 

I've never had a problem with supermarket meat, but I like going whole hog.

I don't generally buy meat at Aldi's but produce, oh yeah! Half the price and I see no difference in freshness. Bananas are green, avocados are hard.
 
#23 ·
If I don't buy that live animal and have it butchered it would be sold to the packer and butchered. The amount of meat offered for sale hasn't changed. All I've done is cut out the middle men. This way I know who and how it was raised and cared for. It was transported a couple of miles instead of crammed in a semi for a long haul. I know who did the processing and can inspect the facility. It treats it's employees well.

I've never had a problem with supermarket meat, but I like going whole hog.

I don't generally buy meat at Aldi's but produce, oh yeah! Half the price and I see no difference in freshness. Bananas are green, avocados are hard.
 
#24 ·
Geez my mom used to get a leg of lamb as big as a cows leg now they are size of a small roast.
The smaller roast tastes better. Fact.
I prefer to shop in smaller markets whenever possible. I'm not a fan of big discount stores like Aldi/TraderJoes or Walmart. Costco is decent though.

I'd rather pay a little more and eat a little less, but better quality. I have friends who always go to the absolute cheapest place, buy way too much cheap meat, and throw away half of what they buy. I find that disgusting on so many levels.
Agreed agreed agreed. Every person thinks of money and value differently. I feel just as strongly about where my money goes as I do about the things it buys me. Although it's a luxury when I travel upstate I like to stop by one of my favorite local farms and buy meats, honey, produce, dairy etc. It's a heck of a lot more expensive for me to buy grass fed meat on a farm than it is to buy the Manager's Special at the supermarket but I feel so much better about my purchase. Eat a little less but better quality is spot on.

Then there's people like my mil who must have grown up in extreme poverty because we can't eat a meal without her lamenting over the cost of every bite of food. Sometimes when I hear how cheaply she bought some of the food I wonder where she bought it and why. Sometimes I question its origin and freshness.

Now I'm not one for wasting money but food is one of the most important things we buy. It's an investment not only in our local economy but also our health and pleasure.
 
#25 ·
"Now I'm not one for wasting money but food is one of the most important things we buy.  It's an investment not only in our local economy but also our health and pleasure."

I agree completely. When you spend $100 at some monolithic chain store, $90 or more goes leaves your community and goes off to god-knows-where. When you spend that same money at a locally owned enterprise, that $ stays in the community much longer. The owners kids gets new shoes. the shoe shop guys wife is able to go the community college to to get that degree she's always wanted (in animal husbandry no less...). The circle stays stronger.
 
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