We respectfully raise 100% grass-fed Beef, Lamb, and Bison on our Farms from birth to processing. 100% Grass-fed means NO GRAINS or green grains are fed, just pasture grasses in the summer and dried grasses (HAY) in the winter.
More details about Grass Fed Here. Buy Grass-fed beef online.
Grass-fed Beef
Cattle are HERBIVORES;
“herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically adapted to eating plant material, for example foliage, for the main component of its diet. As a result of their plant diet, herbivorous animals typically have mouthparts adapted to rasping or grinding. A large percentage of herbivores have mutualistic gut flora that help them digest plant matter, which is more difficult to digest than animal prey. This flora is made up of cellulose-digesting protozoans or bacteria.”(Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
We have selected cattle breeds, and growing practices that ensure we raise tender, flavourful and most importantly, healthy beef.
To allow for marbling in the beef to develop naturally, each animal is 24 to 30 months before processing. We have selected English breeds of cattle that are best suited to the natural grasslands in Grey and Bruce County.
The health of our animals is our first priority. We have developed a proactive approach to maintaining their health.
Clean housing, fresh air, healthy pastures with a big variety of natural grasses, legumes and a healthy concoction of minerals work together to keep our animals healthy and happy.
The kelp, mineral, and diatomaceous earth is offered as free choice to our cattle all year long.
The kelp and minerals boosts their immune system and digestion and the diatomaceous earth is a finely ground shell that is used to reduce parasites.
We clean their housing with an all-natural clay disinfectant. All of the mineral, kelp, diatomaceous earth and clay cleaner are chemical free.
How Our Grass-fed Beef is Processed
We dry age our grass-fed beef at the butcher for 14 days only, no longer as grass-fed beef is considered extra extra lean, aging any longer will reduce the quality of the meat. (Dry aging does 2 things, moisture evaporates improving the beef flavour and an enzyme in the meat begins to act and break-down the connective tissue improving the tenderness of the beef, (this starts around day 7 of the aging process)
Check out Grass-Facts for more info on grass-fed beef, lamb and bison, or check out www.eatwild.com. They are the leading grass-fed experts on the environmental and health benefits of grass-fed beef.
Packaged Weight NOT Dressed or Hanging Weight – When you purchase 150 pounds of grass-fed beef at Farm Queen Foods, you receive 150 pounds of grass-fed beef. We sell by the packaged weight, the weight is on each package, weighed and labeled by the Butcher.
If you purchase meat by the dressed or hanging weight, you are paying for approximately 45 to 55% waste, like bones, gristle or unusable parts that are not used to get to the final cut & wrapped weight you consume.
A 100 pound Quarter beef started out as a 1200 pound live animal, which was processed to a 675 pound hanging or dressed weight, (or 170 pound per quarter), which results in a total of 400 to 425 pounds of packaged meat, or when divided into 4 quarters, 100 to 112 pounds of packaged meat.
You can purchase individual cuts, samplers and sides. You can custom cut a whole, half or quarter animal as well.
Per PACKAGE POUND Pricing is based on what the animal yields. It has been our experience that the following ratio of cuts can be expected from each animal;
- 55% Utility Cuts – (Ground Beef, Stew Meat or Stir Fry) (Hamburger patties are wheat free and made from 100% Ground Beef)
- 15% Steak (Sirloin, Striploin, Ribeye, Tenderloin, Wing, Round, Flank, Minute Steak and T-bone)
- 25% Roasts (Rump, Blade, Cross Rib, Short Rib, Top Sirloin, Prime Rib and Round)
- 5% Liver, Heart, Soup Bones and Tongue
We, as a group of ecological farmers focus on honouring the whole animal and offer the above as a guideline to show what each animal produces. As the purchaser of a half or quarter, we hope that our packaging and custom processing allows you to receive a variety of cuts you prefer, while utilizing all that the animal produces.
Grass-fed Bison – SEASONAL – FALL ONLY – Buy On-line!
ALSO HERBIVORES
Bison is a different creature and requires specific fencing and farming practices to ensure the farmers safety and good animal health. The Buffalo we sell is raised on a farm located just around the corner from Farm Queen Foods. They have been raising Buffalo for over 30 years. Buffalo are not tame, they will attack.
The farm is located in a quiet, rural area, away from other farms, they range in large, tightly fenced fields. They have their off spring unassisted each spring. We are thankful for the work these farmers do to bring us all healthy, grass-fed Bison.
Grass-fed Lamb – also a Herbivor
Have you ever tasted grass-fed lamb or goat grown in Grey County where the sweet perennial grasses give the meat a rich, savory flavor and delicate texture? Grass fed lamb tastes like the grass it was grown on. Fresh and a little wild! Buy some on-line when in season from late August to December.
It takes a little longer, and a lot more work to raise 100% grass-fed lamb, but the personal reward and flavour is worth it. Fed only hay and fresh pasture, grass-fed lamb has a unique flavour, and we do it for their health and happiness, ours, yours and the environment. Read more about Grass-fed lamb.
100% Grass fed lamb is pastured on grass in the spring, summer and fall and fed hay in the winter. To achieve a great tasting meat, the animals are grown using a rotational pasture system. Grass-fed farmers grow and plan their birthing cycles around the grass-growing seasons. Which works well for the lambs, because they naturally want to produce off spring in the spring when there is plenty to eat.
Lamb is most desired at Easter, many folks wish to have Easter Lamb. Sorry to say we only have lamb left for Easter if some of the lambs were born late or grow slow over the summer and fall. We have a few breeds that do grow slower.
Lamb is sold at a premium at Easter, so many farmers have changed to their farm practices to reach the peak season price, causing almost the entire industry to breed their sheep sooner, lamb earlier than normal and feed grains to lambs to fatten them up in time for the Easter Meal.
Thankfully, we do not, and our Partnership farms who grow grass-fed lamb are thankful to have you support their more natural growing practice. A lamb born later in spring, is warmer, heartier and ready to go on pasture just in time to eat the spring flush. Spring Flush occurs in mid to late May and is a result of the pasture grasses waking up and some warm rain.
As I write this page, the warm May drizzle is causing the grass to sprout up, the daffodils to sag a little and the garlic tops to grow. Spring flush grass is a bright limey green and the lambs and goat kick up their heals when going out on pasture for the first time after a long cold winter. They clamor out of the barn and through the pasture gate to explore the fields and eat the first fresh lime green grass of the season.
Growing slow on pasture takes time and grass fed lambs and goats are older and larger at processing than Easter Lamb. They are around 100 to 110lbs, are lean and the red meat is full of nutrients and good things similar to grass-fed beef, CLA and richer in omega 3’s.
If you haven’t tried grass-fed lamb, give a 5lb Sampler a try or grill up some lamb patties to change up your best Burger recipe, or go for the gold and put some Lamb Loin Chops on a cookie sheet, with salt pepper, olive oil and little Parmesan cheese, pre-heat the oven to 500, put in the chops, shut off the oven and 15 mins, later, you can enjoy some beautiful med-rare grass-fed lamb loin chop!
You can purchase our grass-fed lamb online to be delivered everywhere in Ontario. A Grass-fed fan? Check out our grass-fed beef and bison.
Inspected & Labeled
All meats are available as part of our Farm Share or Fall Family CSA.
A Provincial Meat Inspector has inspected all the meat we sell. The label on each package contains vital information like the processing date, weight, processors name, meat inspection number and the cut of meat.
