Although the price of cattle is currently high, it is always a challenge for any farmer or rancher to thrive financially in a volatile marketplace. Some beef producers have turned to shipping meat directly to customers.
Annalisa Beck of S Ranch Meats in Hardin, Montana, says that direct shipping works for her because the ranch doesn’t have enough of a land base to compete with the truly large operations. Beck says that someone looking to get into marketing this way has to account for the two years it takes to get to slaughter time. It is a different business model than a cow-calf operation, she emphasizes.
Beck runs the ranch with her husband, Dana, a daughter, son-in-law and one hired man. Direct-shipping beef may be a viable option for small to midsize operations like S Ranch Meats.
The packaging, shipping cost and dry ice account for the biggest expense in marketing beef this way. “That’s our biggest chunk of cost,” says Beck. Because shipping has gotten so costly in recent years, S Ranch Meats ships mostly to customers in the western part of the country.
One of the advantages to direct shipping beef is the price a producer can get. S Ranch Meats is currently getting $8.99 per pound for ground beef. Steaks current demand a high price and quickly sell out, according to Beck.
A philosophical decision the Becks have made is to keep some products relatively cheap.
“We try not to have a base price too high because we want to also sell locally,” says Beck.
All ranchers interviewed for this story were clear about one thing: dry ice. Dan Kaplan owns and operates Heartstone Farm in central Maine. Heartstone is sort of a New England version of Butcher Box, selling a variety of meats, with customers mostly in the eastern U.S.
Kaplan emphasizes that having the right shipping materials is key.
“We go through an enormous amount of dry ice,” he says.
In addition to the farm, Kaplan has a warehouse in Dover-Foxcroft, Maine. He employs a total of 10 people, and a big chunk of the labor goes into shipping.
“We have five or six employees working on shipping,” Kaplan says.
Kaplan stresses that attention to detail is key in making his business work. In warm weather, he may delay shipping beef. On the rare occasion when there has been a problem with an order, Heartstone always provides a refund or finds another way to make it right with the customer. The dry ice, insulated packaging and strategic shipping are the things that define a successful business model shipping quality beef directly to customers, according to Kaplan.
Heidi Todd started direct-shipping beef in 2020. Although Todd Family Meats, based in Big Timber, Montana, is still in the building phase, Todd is optimistic.
“We wanted to provide the kind of meat we raised for our family for other people,” she says. Things are going well; the burgeoning ranch has sold beef all over the mainland U.S., as well as to Hawaii and Alaska. However, Todd makes the point that marketing beef this way is not for everyone.
“There are a lot of moving parts,” she says. “It’s a lot of work and not for the faint of heart.”
Todd lists out all the steps involved in direct shipping beef: arranging times with the butcher, picking up meat, preparing the box, writing thank-you notes, driving to get dry ice and several more. It’s those logistical details that are the backbone of an attempt at making a living shipping beef directly to the consumer.
“We have a high-quality product,” says Todd. “Once the customer finds a high-quality product, they are willing to pay for it.”
Todd identifies two reasons she and her husband, Gary, wanted to do business the way they do. First, they wanted to establish a connection with their customers. With both of them coming from ranching families deeply invested in beef production, they created a business where the customer can know the details of how the beef was produced. “They know how the animal was raised. We raise all our animals from start to finish,” says Todd.
That connection between beef producer and customer is the heart and soul of any successful direct-marketing business.
The second reason Todd Family Meats is set up the way it is involves marketplace realities.
“The other thing is because we are smaller, we had to have a market,” says Todd.
Focused on the logistics of making the product right – from the handwritten thank-you notes to the insulated shipping boxes – Todd also recognized early on, like Kaplan and Beck, that smaller producers need to get maximum value out of their product.
One advantage Todd Family Meats has is they are near a USDA processing plant – roughly 10 miles. Their dry-aging process of the beef lasts 14 to 20 days. All the ground beef is sourced from a single animal. Although they have to drive 60 miles to source dry ice, having a quality processing facility nearby helps make their labor-intensive business model work.
A final logistic reality that can’t be overlooked is insurance. Although all agricultural producers carry liability insurance, it is especially important for anyone selling beef directly to seek out an appropriate amount of farm insurance.
With smaller producers always trying to find a viable place in the shifting world of beef production, the option of direct-shipping is becoming more common across the nation. It may not be for every producer, but understanding the logistics can give those considering this option a leg up.
