Half a cow for sale near Fort Worth
How much is half a cow? Here, $2,815 for approximately 225 lbs of packaged beef — about $12.50 a pound for every cut on the animal, from an approximately 375 lb hanging weight. It is half beef (some call it a side of beef) from one of our own animals, raised between Perrin and Jacksboro an hour northwest of Fort Worth, grain-finished for real marbling, and cut exactly the way your family cooks.
Half cow · currently $2,815
What you're actually buying
A half beef is not a curated box someone else picked. It is half of one real animal — the same animal, front to back — turned into steaks, roasts, ribs, brisket, stew meat and ground beef according to a cut sheet you fill out.
That is the whole reason people do this. You stop buying whatever the store decided to stock, and you start eating off one animal you can point at, raised on ground you can drive to.
- Born, raised and finished in Jack County — no sale barn cattle
- Grass-fed on the valley, grain-finished for marbling
- Processed at American Butchery in Mineral Wells
- Vacuum-sealed, flash-frozen, labeled by cut
- Ranch pickup, or delivery in our North Texas area
Buying a half cow near Fort Worth, Weatherford, Decatur and the towns around us
If you are searching for a half cow near you in North Texas, this is where it comes from: one ranch, Jack County, between Perrin and Jacksboro. Two ways to get it home:
- Ranch pickup by appointment at 7072 US-281 South, Jacksboro, TX 76458. This is a working ranch, not a storefront, so call ahead and we will have your beef ready. Local beef in Jacksboro.
- Delivery to the towns around us:
Town pages: Fort Worth · Weatherford · Decatur · Mineral Wells · Graham · Bridgeport. Not on the list? Call (214) 202-1855 and ask — all delivery details.
How much beef is in half a cow?
A half runs to roughly 225 lbs of packaged beef — cut, wrapped, vacuum-sealed and frozen — estimated off an approximately 375 lb hanging weight. Weight varies with the individual animal and with the choices you make on your cut sheet, so treat it as a good estimate rather than a guarantee.
If you want to understand where those two numbers come from, here is how live weight, hanging weight and take-home weight relate.
How much meat is in half a cow — the weight table and cut mix →
Watch out for this when you compare ranches. Some sell by hanging weight ("$8.00 a pound") and some sell a flat price for a half. Those two numbers are not comparable until you convert them, and a hanging-weight quote almost never includes the processing bill. Ask any ranch — including us — what the total is, out the door. Full explanation here.
Is half a cow too much beef?
Here is the honest test. A half beef is roughly a year of beef for a household that eats it several times a week. If your family eats beef once a week, a half will last you closer to two years — which is fine if it is vacuum-sealed and your freezer stays cold, but it is a lot of freezer tied up. If that is you, split it with somebody.
How to split a beef with another family → Or take a quarter cow instead.
What it costs against the grocery store
The comparison people usually make is against 80/20 ground beef, and on ground beef alone bulk beef does not save you money. The comparison that actually matters is against the whole basket — because a half beef includes ribeyes, strips, tenderloin and brisket at the same per-pound price as the ground.
We did the math cut by cut, honestly, including where it does not save you money →
Quarter, half and whole cow prices side by side are on the pricing page.
Before you call, it helps to know
Hanging weight explained
Live weight, hanging weight, take-home weight — and how to compare two ranches' quotes without getting fooled.
Read the guide →
Will it fit in my freezer?
Cubic feet needed for a quarter, half and whole, what freezer to buy and what it costs to run.
Read the guide →
Filling out the cut sheet
Steak thickness, roast size, grind ratio, what to do with the brisket. The part that trips up every first-timer.
Read the guide →
Half cow questions
How much is half a cow at Lost Valley Beef?
Where can I buy a half cow near me?
Is half a cow the same as a side of beef?
How much meat do you get from a half a cow?
What cuts come in half a cow?
How much freezer space do I need for a half a cow?
Can I split half a cow with someone else?
Where is it processed?
Talk to the ranch
Reserve half a cow
Currently $2,815. Call the ranch and we will tell you what is available, what your animal is expected to weigh, and when you would pick it up.
(214) 202-1855Monday–Thursday, 10am–2pm · Call or text