We currently raise Highland beef for sale both as beef and registered breeding stock.  We chose Highlands for many reasons.  They are hardy, good mothers, very docile, not prone to illness, and good foragers.  They produce lean meat that is naturally low in cholesterol as well as being very full flavored.  We are also experimenting with a Murray Grey/Highland cross that we believe will produce excellent grass fed beef with more marbling from only pasture.   For more information about the benefits of eating grassfed products, please visit Eatwild.com.

Highland cattle originated in the Highlands of Scotland and descended for many years through the process of natural selection.   That is, only the strong and healthy survived.  That process lead to a breed that is strong and hardy, and does not require some of the special care required by other breeds today.  They require little in the way of shelter, calve easily, and will eat some forage that other cattle will not.

Murray Grey cattle were developed in Australia during the last century, and were first imported to the United States in 1970.   They combine the best traits of its parent breeds into a very unique, all beef breed.  Murray Grey cattle have the excellent temperament, thriftiness and meat tenderness of the Shorthorns and the marbling traits of the original Scotch Aberdeen Angus.   They produce an excellent grass finished beef.

At Giles Ranch, we do not baby our cows.  They are raised on what forage they can get from the pastures as well as hay as necessary during the winter.  They also receive an all natural mineral supplement and loose rock salt for their minerals.  They are raised naturally, which means that we do not use any hormones, steroids, performance enhancers, etc.  Whatever they get, they get what God provides from the ground. We also do not use any chemical pesticides on our pastures but rely on rotational grazing and occasional mowing to keep the weeds at bay.

PRICING
Our beef cost $2.50 per pound of hanging weight, plus processing charges, currently $0.38 per pound of hanging weight, plus $0.30 per pound for any ground beef made into patties or round steak tenderizing.  We use a local family owned USDA inspected processing plant about 25 minutes from our farm, Golden City Meat Company.  We dry age our beef 14-21 days before final cutting to improve tenderness and flavor.  All cut meat is vacuum packed.  We will transport the beef to the processor, have it processed to your instructions, and then let you pick it up at the processor.

We estimate to get about 55-65% of the hanging weight into packaged meat.  If you also include the organ meats, tongue, extra fat, and extra bones, the ratio should be higher.  If you want only ground beef, this ratio would be a little lower due to the lack of bones.  For a 500 pound hanging weight, a ¼ beef would figure like this:

500# x ¼ (quarter beef) = 125# hanging weight x ($2.50 meat cost + $0.38 processing cost) = $360 for about 65-75# of packaged beef.  The hanging weight can vary from 400 to 600 pounds, but will likely be closer to 450-500.  Our last beef had a hanging weight of 448 pounds.

You would pay us for the meat and pay the processing cost to the processor when you pick up the beef.  There is a $100 deposit on the meat to hold your order.

If you are interested in purchasing beef, please email us at gilesranch@gmail.com, or phone at (417)621-5476.

For much, much more information on Highland Cattle, please visit our local association, the Heartland Highland Cattle Association or visit the American Highland Cattle Association.   For more information about the benefits of eating grassfed products, please visit Eatwild.com.