June 17th I delivered 4-beef to Homestead Packing for processing. About a week later I was in the area and stopped to see how the beef looked. The beef you see hanging on the rail to my right are our beef. The steer you see in the picture to my right dressed 885 pounds! That means his live weight was about 1425# at 27 months old.
Look at all the fat down his side, shoulders, and rump. There was plenty of body cavity fat as well. This is what we are shooting for! It is not just about age (most slaughter way to young) or weight. It is about "is he finished"? And he is not finished until there is a good fat profile - which takes time and good nutrition.
Stages of growth tell the story. Regardless of age, the first requirement from grazing is to satisfy their daily maintenance needs. Nutrition left after maintenance needs are meet go to build structure or frame. When the frame is complete then extra nutrition (after maintenance) goes to adding muscle to the frame. Finally, once muscle fills the frame then any extra nutrition goes to fat and marbling. The amount of marbling helps determine the "grade" of steak.
Now, contrast our beef with the beef hanging over my left shoulder
