Beef Front (Fore) Quarter
Processing Percentages

This chart should help you understand that "it's not all meat".

They show the amount of meat to be processed, the weight that the customer can expect to receive, and the percentage of loss through boning, fat removal, and trimmings. These authoritative charts are the results of many cutting test made by meat experts.

Of course, it must be realized by consumers that the size of the animal, the amount of fat, the grade of the meat, and the amount of trimming and boning that is done by the meat processor all affects the percentage of meat that the consumer will receive. This chart can be considered as a guide to give some ideal of the amount of meat to be received.

Take-home meet to expect from a 140 lb. beef front quarter

(Trimmed cuts as usually found at retail)

Rib Cuts -- Short ribs can be removed from the end of the rib that has the exposed cut surface of the rib bones. One or two rib roasts my be cut from the large end of the rib. The remaining portion should be cut into rib steaks. Lean trim that is generated from this cut can be converted into ground beef.

Plate Cuts --If this wholesale cut is purchased, short ribs may be removed from the edge with the exposed cut surface of the rib bones. The remainder of the plate should be boned and converted to ground beef.

Brisket Cuts --The brisket should be boned to create a boneless brisket roast. Other uses of this boneless cut include corned beef and barbecued beef.

Chuck Cuts --If the foreshank is left on the chuck, it should be boned and converted to ground beef. The arm portion of the chuck where the shank is removed may be cut into boneless or bone-in arm roasts and/or steaks, depending on personal preference, after the short ribs have been removed. This cut is made perpendicular to the arm bone. Blade roasts are removed by cutting the desired thickness at the cut surface where the rib was removed. After cutting all of the way past the blade bone, the neck portion can be converted to neck roasts or boned for the manufacture of ground beef or stew meat.

You can find the up-to-date prices for purchasing a front quarter of beef (available in-store only) by clicking this link.

Back To Beef Front Quarter Cuts

Last Updated:  Saturday, October 04, 2008 12:42 PM

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