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The Green Red Meat Miniature cattle are an up and coming market for gourmet restaurants and markets. Their leaner cuts and smaller portions are becoming increasingly popular for the health conscious eaters today. When eating grass fed beef you will find more omega-3 fatty acids, linoleic acid, and antioxidant vitamins. These nutrients reduce your chance of heart disease or cancer. The real excitement (that your heart will now be able to handle) comes to those of us who love the meat but not the expense. Farmers charge a per pound price for an animal and deliver it to the meat locker for you. The meat processor also charges a per pound hanging weight price. Miniature cows are weighing in at approximately 600 lbs. live weight. The average amount of meat you receive after a mini cow has been processed is 300 lbs. You can select your cuts of beef and size of packages. This much meat will fit in a standard freezer. There is no need to go out and purchase an additional chest freezer. One cow is the ideal amount of beef to feed a small family for 4-6 months. One dual-purpose mini gives off just the right amount of milk for a family – about 1 1⁄2 gallons per day. Enough for butter, cheese, and a couple glasses of milk daily.
There are so many reasons to buy into raising miniature cows. You can turn a small acreage into a mini cattle ranch thus reducing your property taxes. In addition, your expenses from the farm are a deduction. Raise your own miniature cattle and know what the animal is eating and how it is being cared for before it goes on your dining room table. The miniature cattle farmer is benefited from their herd. You only need approximately 1/2 an acre per cow vs 2 acres per full sized cow. You can have several mini- cows on a 2.5 acre hobby farm or homestead. These minis eat 1/3 to 1/2 less feed as their larger counterparts. These little cows come in at a 25% higher feed conversion rate than traditional cows which means more profit.
RAM recently built a 30’ x 64’ x 10’ building for a miniature cattle and miniature horse ranch. Terry shared that the building has helped organize him tremendously. It lessens his chores, brings the animals in from the cold so they can congregate together, and there is still room to store his equipment, machinery, and hay.
Terry just started running his ranch 6 months ago. He really loves working with the animals on the farm. Right now he is only a part timer but he would like to progress to the point where the ranch would be his full time job. Quality over quantity is his motto. The biggest issue he has run into is that people aren’t aware they can go directly to the farmer for purchase of meat. This will be his largest marketing issue. Whether you are buying locally, starting your own farm, or simply reading the article I think we can all agree the “green” red meat sounds like a genius idea and an enticing entree.
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