We sell whole, half and quarter beef carcasses, and there are two parts to the price: you pay us for the carcass, and you pay the butcher for the butchery of the carcass.

The carcass is $15 per kg on the bone including GST, plus butchery. The butchery is approximately $3 per kg. This includes a base quantity of standard sausages but excludes extra sausages, small goods and other extras. See more on butchery prices in What are the butchery prices? below.

The carcass price covers selecting the animal, the On Farm Harvest, and delivery of the carcass to the butcher. The carcass and organs are inspected by an MPI-approved inspector at the time of harvest, and the carcass weight is recorded by the micro abattoir at the time of slaughter. Your price is calculated on this actual weight, and as you’re purchasing a carcass, all the fat and bones are included if you want them.

The butcher’s price includes dry aging the carcass for approximately 10 days, processing it into the cut preferences you choose in your beef order, and packaging it ready for collection.

The beef organs are not part of the weighed carcass and are an additional price. The beef cheeks and oxtail are $23 per kg, and the ox tongue, ox heart, liver and kidneys are $13 per kg.

Like home kill, carcass weight varies with the animal selected, generally 250 – 300 kg for a whole beast. The cards below show the price range for each order size, at $15/kg for the carcass plus approximately $3/kg butchery, or $18/kg all up.

Prices are based on the carcass weight ranges shown. Carcass weight varies depending on the animal selected and is charged per kg on the actual recorded weight.

Butchery prices shown are for standard butchery with the average base amount of standard sausages only. They do not include the cost of any extra sausages or small goods (salami, biersticks, patties and the like) selected in an order, which are charged additionally by the butcher. All prices GST inclusive.

The $18/kg above is per kg of carcass weight. For what that works out to per kg of packaged beef — approximately $27.70 per kg, depending on your cut choices — see How much meat can I expect from an order?

When you place an order, you choose the cuts you want the carcass processed into and we organise everything, including selecting the butcher and providing them with your cut preferences. Unsure what to choose? We’re happy to help you decide.

We select the animal, On Farm Harvest (slaughter) and process to order, so we proceed once we have enough orders to book the mobile abattoir (provided stock is available when you order). Once confirmed, you’ll be notified of the harvest date by email. Collection is approximately 2 to 3 weeks after harvest. This allows time for the carcass to hang and age for around 10 days, then be processed and packaged into your chosen cuts. You collect from your nearest preferred butcher.

Note that quarter orders have limited cut options. You’ll see the full choices on the order form.

To place an order, all you need to do is complete the order form. Once we have enough orders to proceed, we’ll contact you with the On Farm Harvest date and request payment of your deposit to secure your order.

1. Once you’ve ordered and submitted your cut preferences, a deposit of $500 is requested as we near a confirmed harvest date, paid to Wild Meadows to secure your order.
2. The final amount for the carcass is due to Wild Meadows once the animal is slaughtered and weighed, and we’ve assigned you your carcass or part carcass.
3. You pay the butcher’s fee directly to the butcher, prior to or on the day you collect your order. This isn’t included in what you pay Wild Meadows.

The base price for butchery is approximately $2 to $2.25 per kg carcass weight, depending on the butcher. Sausages are $7 to $9 per kg (gourmet flavours at the higher end), and you can expect around 10% of the carcass weight in sausages without choosing extras. All up, butchery comes to approximately $3 per kg carcass weight if you don’t choose extra sausages or small goods.

Typical prices for extras and small goods:

• Corning: either included in the base fee or around $5 to $10.
• Burger patties and breakfast sausages: approximately $9 to $10 per kg.
• Salami: approximately $14 to $17 each.
• Biersticks: approximately $16 per kg.
• Diced beef: included in the base fee or $5 to $6 per kg.

Like homekill, sausages and small goods are weighed after they’re made, so the butcher confirms your final butchery cost.

The above is a price guide only. Prices vary by butcher, but all are competitively priced, and exact butchery prices are available from the butchers directly. All prices are GST inclusive.

We work with preferred butchers in the Auckland and Whangārei areas who specialise in processing animals for customers. All are Home Kill licensed and retail licensed, and skilled at their craft. We select the butcher for your order based on your location and availability.

These are our preferred butchers. If you have a preference between them, or another butcher in mind, just talk to us. We will accommodate any special butcher preference if we can.

Yes. Our carcass price of $15 per kg including GST is the wholesale price: it’s the same price a butcher pays for a carcass from Wild Meadows for their retail shop. When you buy beef over a butcher’s counter, a retail margin is added on top of the carcass and processing costs, so buying farm to table from Wild Meadows works out significantly cheaper overall. The only difference is you’re buying at carcass scale, and paying the butcher directly for the processing.

They’re not part of the weighed carcass, but are available to purchase at an additional price, on a first-in, first-served basis (otherwise they’re sold elsewhere). The beef organs are the beef cheeks, oxtail, ox tongue, ox heart, liver and kidneys. Note on your cut preferences which you’d like and they will be provided if available.

• Ox tongue, ox heart, liver and kidneys: $13 per kg.
• Beef cheeks and oxtail: $23 per kg.
• Corned tongue: the butcher can do this, which may incur a small additional charge.

You pay on carcass weight, and your carcass yields approximately 65% of that weight in packaged beef. Here’s what that looks like for each order size:

What that works out to per kg of packaged beef

Carcass weight is what you pay on, but packaged beef is what goes in your freezer, so it’s worth knowing what the two prices are. At $15 per kg for the carcass plus approximately $3 per kg butchery, you’re paying $18 per kg of carcass weight. Divide that by a 65% yield and your packaged beef works out at approximately $27.70 per kg — and that’s across the whole animal, eye fillet and scotch fillet included, not just the mince and the gravy beef.

The price per kg is the same whether you order a quarter, a half or a whole. Order size changes the total, not the rate.

Why your price per kg will differ

This is an estimate, not a fixed price. Two things move it, and both are down to how you choose to have your beef cut: how much packaged beef your carcass yields, and what the butchery costs.

Yield

The estimate is worked out at a 65% yield. A higher yield spreads the same carcass cost over more packaged kilos, so your price per kg comes down. A lower yield does the opposite. What moves it:

• The amount of fat trimming (less trimming means a higher yield)
• The fat content of your mince (standard mince yields more than very lean mince)
• The fat content of your sausages
• Boneless or bone-in cuts (bone-in cuts produce a higher yield)
• Moisture loss in the carcass

So if you choose minimal fat trimming, standard mince and bone-in cuts, your yield is higher and your price per kg of packaged beef is lower. Go the other way — heavy trimming, very lean mince, everything boned out — and you’ll get less packaged weight from the same carcass and pay more per kg for it. Neither is wrong; it’s a question of how you want your beef cut.

Butchery

The other half of the sum is the butchery, and that moves with your order too. The approximately $3 per kg used in the estimate covers standard butchery including a base quantity of standard sausages. Fewer sausages than that base and the butchery costs less, so your price per kg comes down. More sausages and it goes up.

Extras are charged on top and will raise your price per kg: extra sausages, corning (corned silverside rather than plain silverside), burger patties, salami and other small goods. For what each of these costs, see What are the butchery prices?

These are exactly the same factors a butcher experiences when purchasing a carcass from an industrial abattoir for their retail shop.

This works like home kill: you’re honouring the whole animal and getting all the meat from it. That means the premium cuts like eye fillet, scotch and sirloin, alongside gravy beef, mince, premium home-kill-style sausages, and everything in between. Some cuts come with options; others, like mince and sausages, are simply part of honouring the whole animal.

• Eye fillet: whole, half or steak
• Sirloin: whole, half or steak
• T-bone steak
• Scotch fillet: whole, half or steak
• Tomahawk steak
• Prime rib roast (standing rib roast)
• Rump: whole, half or steak
• Schnitzel
• Brisket: boneless or bone-in
• Chuck
• Short rib
• Rolled roasts
• Bolar roast
• Topside roast
• Corned silverside
• Pot roast
• Shin: meat or bone-in
• Osso bucco
• Stewing steak
• Gravy beef
• Premium mince
• Sausages: preservative-free, gluten-free, flavoured or gourmet
• Hamburger patties
• Biersticks
• Salami
• Breakfast sausages

And remember, you’re paying for the butchery, so you’re free to make special requests. The butchers are generally happy to help where possible. Every cut is explained in our Beef Cuts Guide.