How Much Is a Quarter Cow? A Straight Answer From an Iowa Farm
Searched "how much is a quarter cow" and got more confusion than answers? Here is the real number: a quarter cow from Mundorf Heritage Beef is $1,250 for about 100 pounds of custom-cut, dry-aged beef, roughly $12.50 a pound. I am Jeff Mundorf, and my family has raised cattle on this Iowa ground near Red Oak since 1873. Here is the honest breakdown.
The real price of a quarter cow
A quarter beef share is $1,250 total, prorated to the animal's actual hanging weight, reserved with a $500 deposit that applies to the price. That is roughly 100 pounds of finished, take-home beef, shipped frozen to the continental United States or picked up locally near Red Oak. We also deliver to the Omaha area. Every animal is a little different, so your final number is prorated, but $1,250 for around 100 pounds is the number to plan around.
What is actually in the box
You are not getting a mystery box, you are choosing your cuts. Within our processor's options you have full say over your cut sheet. Most quarters come out to roughly 50 pounds of ground beef, with the rest in steaks and roasts. Every pound is pasture raised, grass fed and grain finished Angus, dry-aged up to 21 days. New to the cut sheet? See our beef cut sheet guide.
Quarter, half, or whole: which fits
A quarter is the entry point and fits a standard kitchen freezer. If you cook beef most weeks, compare it against a half cow or a whole cow, where the per-pound price drops. Our quarter vs half guide walks through the choice.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a quarter cow cost?
A quarter cow is $1,250 for about 100 pounds of custom-cut, dry-aged beef, roughly $12.50 a pound, reserved with a $500 deposit that applies to the total.
How much meat is in a quarter cow?
About 100 pounds of take-home beef, commonly around 50 pounds of ground beef with the rest in steaks and roasts. It varies with your cut choices.
How much freezer space does a quarter cow need?
About 3 cubic feet, which fits a standard kitchen freezer or a small chest freezer.
Is the beef grass fed?
Our Angus is pasture raised and grass fed, then grain finished for flavor, and dry-aged up to 21 days.
Keep reading
About the author. Jeff Mundorf is the fifth generation raising cattle on his family's seventh-generation Iowa farm near Red Oak, founded in 1873. He studied Meat Science and Animal Science at Colorado State University.