Price Guide

Pricing for a whole animal is a little different from standard grocery store pricing.

There are two main factors for whole animal pricing:

-Animal weight

-Processing fees.

The animal weight accounts for the feed cost and labor of raising an animal, while the processing fees account for butchering and any extra work done to the meat products like making sausage, hams, bacon, etc.

Here’s an example: our pork is currently sold at $3.63/lb hanging weight

After the animal is slaughtered, bled, and gutted the processor will take a USDA approved weight and send it to Prairie Mechanics, this is called the “hanging weight.” Let’s say the hog had a hanging weight of 220 lbs.

Processing fees can vary widely, from as low as $300/animal to upwards of $700, depending on what products are ordered. As a general rule, anything that requires smoking, salting, seasoning, or stuffing will cost more because it requires more work. Let’s say the processing bill was $300.00.

Putting the farmer and processor bills together, we get: $798.60 + $300.00 = $1,098.60

A hog this size typically yields around 80% of its hanging weight. You could expect around 176.0lb of pork in your freezer, at an average cost of $6.24/lb.

Might sound like a lot, but remember that this includes bacon, sausage, and ham which run between $10-$20/lb for equivalent premium cuts!

For further reading, check out this page from the University of Madison.