[Prairie_Beef] Belted Galloway value

[Kevin Carpenter]

All -

In some follow-up e-mail with Mary, she provided the following information:

"We sell weanling heifers for $1500 to $1600; weanling bulls for $1200 to
$1500; and older, bred, proven cows for around $2200 to $2500.  Prices
on the youngsters increase as they approach breeding age."

For those looking for profit, this blows away cattle barn sales.  She goes
on to say that demand is high, but some time is required working with each
buyer.  Given that I recently paid $1000 for a mixed breed "short and
solid" cow/calf pair, the $2200 for a pregnant Beltie sounds pretty
lucrative.  Of course, once the supply/demand curve is met, and the price
comes down, one could always just sell them as beef.  The going rate for a
side of grass-fed beef appears to be around $500 - $1000 for a whole cow;
not as lucrative given one needs to hold the steers for about 18 months to
get them to slaughter weight without any growth hormones like MFA Cattle
Charge - but lower input cost without that feed supplement.  Also, they
can be sold lighter and still yield the same pounds of beef:  Galloway's
don't carry the back fat other breeds have - so they dress out in the
60-65% range.

Kevin