FAQs
IS EVERYTHING SOLD FROZEN?
Yes, all our beef is sold frozen. We harvest once a month, and after processing at our USDA-inspected facility, the beef is handled and sold frozen to maintain quality. In the future, we may offer fresh products—stay tuned!
WHAT’S THE TURNAROUND TIME ON A CUSTOM CUT SIDE OF BEEF ORDER?
We harvest beef once per month, so turnaround time depends on our processing date on any given month. Generally, please expect about a 2-5 week turnaround on Custom Cut Sides of Beef.
WHAT’S THE TURNAROUND TIME ON A RANCH MIX ORDER?
Please allow 7 business days for FREE LOCAL DELIVERY or until your order is ready for pick-up at the Ranchstand. We often have 25 Pound Ranch Mix boxes packed and available for self checkout at our Ranchstand
WHAT TOWNS DO YOU DELIVER TO? HOW DOES THAT WORK?
We offer free weekly delivery to Burlington, Colchester, Williston, Essex, Shelburne, Hinesburg, Charlotte, Vergennes, Richmond, Jericho, St. George, Middlebury Monkton, Starksboro, & Bristol.
Once you place an order, we will email you with the date we’ll be in your town and what time window we’ll be dropping your order off in. During warmer months, if you are not going to be home during the delivery window, we recommend placing one or two large coolers outside your door for you order. You can also direct us to your freezer, should you not be home to receive your order.
HOW MUCH FREEZER SPACE DO I NEED?
Plan on about 1 cubic foot of freezer space per 30-40 pounds of frozen, boxed beef. For a Custom Cut Side of Beef, we recommend at least 6 cubic feet of freezer space.
WHERE DO THE CATTLE GO FOR HARVESTING AND PROCESSING?
Once per month, we truck cattle from our ranch to a local USDA Inspected Meat Processor in central Vermont who does all of our custom beef processing and packaging. We’ve worked with them since we started in 2016 and they’ve always provided excellent service. There our cattle are killed humanly, hung to age for 7-10 days, and then cut to our specific instructions.
Then our frozen and packaged beef is shipped via third party frozen freight back to our Ranchstand and your freezers!
HOW LONG DOES FROZEN BEEF LAST?
According to the USDA, frozen beef is safe indefinitely. We recommend eating within 12 months.
HOW DO I CHOOSE MY CUSTOM CUTS ON A CUSTOM CUT SIDE OF BEEF?
We’ll talk you through the different options you have when choosing how your Side of Beef is cut, make suggestions based on your beef and meal preferences, and then we will fill out your cut sheet form for our USDA Meat Processor.
You can choose what steaks you want cut, how thick your steaks are cut, how many steaks you want per package, what cuts go into your ground beef, if you’d like beef patties, and a few other options as well.
Here is a link to the Cut Sheet we use with the USDA Meat Processor we bring our beef to in central Vermont.
WHAT FORMS OF PAYMENT DO YOU ACCEPT?
At the Ranchstand and for Bulk Beef purchases online, we accept all major credit cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Cash App. Please contact us if you’d prefer to place your order and pay with cash or check.
DO YOUR CATTLE RECEIVE ANY VACCINES?
Our cattle are vaccinated with a tetanus, respiratory, and diarrheal vaccine early on in their long and happy lives. They receive no mRNA vaccines.