Dexter Beef - TV plug

[Pennielea]

Last Saturday I heard James Martin giving Dexter beef a plug on his 'Saturday kitchen' programme. This week he was cooking duck from Ireland. The connection is that he was over at Crossgar and was sold their 'provenance collection' which includes this duck and Dexter beef. I have no inside information but I think the beef will feature shortly. I know that other well known chefs have had the same experience. Crossgar are of course promoting their own business but if that benefits our breed it can only be a good thing.

Ian

[Colin]

Sold a steer to a local butcher some time ago, which his customers loved. He received glowing comments saying the beef was fantastic. His first customer came back to say she'd never tasted steaks any better. He had a sign up on the pavement advertising he had local dexter beef for sale. Since then every time my wife went into his shop he's been asking when could he have another one. So last week I gave him the opportunity, which he was initially very keen on. We agreed a good price, for delivery as soon as possible. Then after talking to another butcher friend of his, he cooled, wanted to delay and said the breed was not commerical. I had to bite my tongue.

Dexter beef will clearly not compete on volume, but it will compete on quality. How do we overcome this resistance from butchers ?

[AlisonKirk]

Colin

We deal with a butcher who takes a Dexter every 5/6 weeks.......small local village butcher also specialising in local game and supplying hotels in the area. He's more than happy with the beef and so are his customers.

We did sell one to a more local butcher (different type of shop to the other one) and he loved the beef and showed me the carcass hanging at the rear of his shop and said he would take another one. He then decided it was too expensive - he had forgotten about the bones when we discussed the deadweight price! He's the butcher. He also charged the same price he charges for commercial beef, which tends to be less than other butchers in the area.

Colin, don't get too disheartened, your butcher should be able to make a reasonable profit, he just wants something a bit cheaper to increase his profit margin. Just like the butcher above. Dexer beef is a specialist product and you just need to find a butcher who appreciates Dexter beef. Not an easy task sometimes, but not impossible.

Regards

Alison Kirk
Boram Dexters

[Joey Baker Cresswell]

I have had the same problem. I have sold quite a few carcasses to a local butcher in the past and he has lots of customers who come in specially asking for Dexter beef. However this year he has said that he won't take them unless they are about 220kg deadweight as otherwise he can't make enough profit. I do have numerous private customers but the downside of selling it that way instead of as whole carcasses is the time factor and everybody wants the same bits! They do however rave about the beef and say they have not had any better.

[Broomcroft]

Sold a steer to a local butcher some time ago, which his customers loved. He received glowing comments saying the beef was fantastic. His first customer came back to say she'd never tasted steaks any better. He had a sign up on the pavement advertising he had local dexter beef for sale. Since then every time my wife went into his shop he's been asking when could he have another one. So last week I gave him the opportunity, which he was initially very keen on. We agreed a good price, for delivery as soon as possible. Then after talking to another butcher friend of his, he cooled, wanted to delay and said the breed was not commerical. I had to bite my tongue.

Dexter beef will clearly not compete on volume, but it will compete on quality. How do we overcome this resistance from butchers ?

Every butcher is different, but with the ones I deal with, we only send them ones that are a "reasonable" size, reasonable in their eyes that is. 200-220 kg deadweight should be fine as Joey said. If that is not OK, then I don't see you can do much except find another butcher or sell it yourself.

[Duncan MacIntyre]

I am afraid I cannot see how an animal the size of a Dexter can reach 22okg carcase weight grass fed at under 30 months - how do you manage it? Mine are currently coming in around 120kg at 26 months straight off grass. Their sire and dams are at the smaller end of long legged.

I am quite convinced that the small carcase size can be overcome by charging a realistic price for a luxury food.

Duncan

[Broomcroft]

I am afraid I cannot see how an animal the size of a Dexter can reach 22okg carcase weight grass fed at under 30 months - how do you manage it? Mine are currently coming in around 120kg at 26 months straight off grass. Their sire and dams are at the smaller end of long legged.

I am quite convinced that the small carcase size can be overcome by charging a realistic price for a luxury food.

Duncan

My heifers come in at around 200kg Duncan, and they are quite small, not tiny but small, certainly well within breed standard. Straight off grass as well. I personally think that the grass has a lot to do with it. We've got modern fairly high sugar grasses and when I've taken stock in from elsewhere, people have been surprised at how they have put on weight and grown.

If you take one of my animals and put it on a field with old grasses, they loose weight very quickly.

[Colin]

The last steer I had done was grass fed and came out at 210 kg cold dead weight (R4H). He was 29 months old. Previous to that I had a 29 month steer at 168 kg (R4L). The estimate I gave to the butcher for the ones ready now are between 210 to 220 kg as they are about the same size as the last one, if anything slightly bigger.

Regards,

Colin

[wagra dexters]

We sent a bull to export slaughter, 38 months old, reasonably good grass fed condition, by Cornahir Outlaw from a Hedgehog cow, very in between beef & dairy looking.
02-Nov-10 so he had had some spring growth to top up his out-wintering condition. We got paid for 237.43 kg body weight.
The faxed print-out arrived the same morning he was slaughtered so that must be hot weight.
Margaret

[Joey Baker Cresswell]

I slaughter mine at just before 30 months so they can hang and probably 3 or 4 out of the 12 or so each year are 200kg deadweight or more. Generally they are about 170-180 kg and a few small ones of 140 kg or so. I have gone right away from short legged as the carcasses are pretty small and by the time you have paid the butchering and killing costs the profit is very small although the small ones often taste best of all! Most butchers don't grasp that if it is 220kg or more it probably isn't a pure Dexter!

[ann]

I have had several over 220 kg and they where definitely pure bred dexters. I have to agree with Clive we have very good grass down here and I run mine as close the the 30 mths as I dare. Interestingly its can be the short cow to a non short bull that throws the biggest ones, and the smallest ones to. I have just sold one of my best bulls as he was to related to some of my stock, hopefully his replacement will prove as good, but I haven't slaughtered any of his progeny yet. Heifers tend to come in a bit lighter at around 180 - 200. One thing that is worth mentioning if your trying to sell to butchers, is that there is definitely not as much waste from a dexter.

[IanLong]

Next summer I hope to be able to start to enjoy the fruits of our labour when our first steer approaches 30 months. Haven't yet given too much thought with regard to the butcher versus family & friends route. Will probably go down the family / friends route as this is the first.

One thing I am really struggling to get a handle on is what sort of variation of prices I might get from a butcher. Judging by this thread, I guess I can hope for a deadweight of between 150 - 200kg and presumably they pay a per kg price. Please could someone either post or pm me some indication of the likely range of prices I might get. (I know this is a question that depends on a 101 different factors, but there must be some consensus)

[Broomcroft]

We get £2.85 a kilo at the moment. Was £3.30 last year. That might be a special price for the TBMM scheme (not sure) but our butchers pay that whether on the scheme or not. Our butchers don't grade, they take the carcass as it is and expect good marbling and fat covering.



Edited By Broomcroft on 1291208588

[Colin]

You could use this as a starting point:

http://www.eblex.org.uk/markets/deadweight_cattle.aspx

But remember that dexter beef is top quality, so push for more than this. If the butcher likes dexter beef and is happy to sell it (see previous comments), you will be in a stronger negotiating position the second time around.

Regards,

Colin

[bjreroberts]

We get £2.85 a kilo at the moment. Was £3.30 last year.

Clive,

I presume at this price you are not paying for the slaughter?