Spring is the air

Went for a walk with my wife this afternoon. It looks like spring has started. This is the first warm day after a long winter with lots of snow.

Looks like even the animals enjoyed the first warming sun rays of the year.

Mule deer browsing on the tender new grass.

Even the Angus bulls on the ranch soaked up some much needed sunshine after a long and cold winter.

Beef Carcass Yield

I am often asked "How much meat will I get from a beef".

From a Grade A steer, weighing about 1,000 pounds on the hoof you can expect an average 430 pounds of take home retail meat cuts. This amounts to an average of 57% edible meat yield.

This average yield may be slightly higher by a higher grade animal or lower by an older or lesser grade animal. The final take home meat yield is also affected by how log the carcass hangs to age. The longer the carcass hangs the higher the loos of moisture and waste trim will be.

Practise your Shooting Skills

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A few times I have been asked what a custom on-site slaughterman does in the off season. I'll answer that question here.

I work a regular job as a butcher in the Local Butcher shop in Merritt. In my spare time I maintain all my equipment needed for on-site livestock slaughtering and spend a lot of time at the local shooting range to practice my marksman skills.

Practicing my shooting skills is very important to me. I know that things can go wrong and as painful as it is, killing an animal not with the first shot can happen. BUT lack of shooting skills or simple ignorance never should be a reason for it. As ethical slaughtermen, it our moral duty to take the greatest care that no animal has to suffer a painful or prolonged dead, we have to make sure that every shot we take finds its mark. For this we need to practice our shooting skills, so when the moment of truth comes we can make that shot with the utmost confidence.

Happy Valentines Day

Happy Valentines Day to the world.

Agriculture Day in Canada

Tomorrow is Agriculture Day in Canada. It is a day where we honour our agriculture community and thank the farmers and ranchers for all the hard work they do to make sure we all have food on our dinner plates.
Agriculture is a very important part of the Canadian economy.

1. Agriculture employs nationwide over 2 million people. 
2. Canada is the world's 5th largest exporter with over 50 billion in annual sales. 
3. Family matters, over 97 % of farmers are family owned and operated. 
4. Farmers contribute over 100 billion dollars to Canada's GDP each year. 
5. Farmers are stewards of the land and play a major roll in protecting and preserving our environment. 
6. Farmers and ranchers believe in responsible animal care that in turn will provide nutritious and healthy meat for the consumers. 
7. Farmers are innovators. Thanks to modern farming practices the average household saves more than 4,000 dollars on food annually, which amounts to 60 billion dollars across Canada. 
8. Canada agriculture product quality ranks number one in the world for food quality and food safety. 
9. A recent study revealed that Canadians trust our farmers and ranchers more than any other industry. 
10. Agriculture is not just a business, it's also a passion and a way of life and having pride in the work they do. 

I support our agriculture community and thank them every day for all the hard work they do. As a butcher I see for myself every day the hard work and struggles of farmers to ensure that we always will have food on our table. https://www.agriculturemorethanever.ca/

High Fat Low Carbohydrate Diet

It is interesting to see how old wisdom from our parents and grandparents is sold as new. Ketogenic diet, is quickly becoming very popular because it works. People who subscribe do it loose weight fast without feeling tired and hungry all the time. Ketogenic diet, a high fat no carbohydrate, seems also to cure some of ailments that plague many people such as diabetes and strengthen the immune system, which is always good to ward off colds, flue and other infectious diseases. Explaining Ketogenic Diet

Vegans threaten farmer with torture and death

I've never heard that meat eaters gang up on vegans and threaten them, let alone sending death treats. On the other hand, stories like this one were vegans gang up on farmers, butcher shop and meat eaters are not uncommon. Yet, it is the vegans that announce at every turn how their way of life is all about love, respect and compassion and that meat eaters and farmers are violent and evil people.
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