Guide to Buying a Half Cow: Choosing The Right Freezer For Your Grass-Fed Beef

Buying a half cow sounds cool until... How am I going to store all that meat? I mean, 200 lbs of grass-fed beef is a lot of meat, right?... 

How to store your bulk grass-fed beef can make buying a half cow seem daunting. The most common questions from first-time purchasers tend to be:

• How big of a freezer will I need?
• Should I get an upright or chest freezer?
• How long will my meat stay fresh in the freezer?

If these questions sound familiar, no worries. We’re here to help you avoid the overwhelm and to make planning and buying a half cow easy. Avoid hours on research with our quick guide to choosing the right freezer for a half cow (or any of our grass-fed beef, for that matter!).

How-to video: choosing the right freezer for your grass-fed beef

Watch the video below for a breakdown of how big of a freezer you need, the pros and cons of both upright and chest freezers, and tips to protect your investment.

Summary

Three tips for estimating your half cow storage needs

• The best rule of thumb is to plan for 25-35 pounds of meat per cubic foot of freezer space.
• Select a freezer no more than 20% bigger than the space you anticipate using to avoid an overabundance of air space.
• Try to purchase no more than one year’s worth of meat to ensure maximum freshness while in storage.

Not sure how to estimate your annual beef needs? 

From our Top 5 Reasons to Buy 1/2 Beef from a Local Farm article:

According to the USDA, Americans eat an average of 56 pounds of beef yearly. In other words, a family of four can expect to consume roughly 224 pounds of beef over the course of one year.

At an estimated total weight of 200 lbs, 1/2 beef from Wanda Farms is appropriate for the average American family. Following that same logic

• 1/4 beef at an estimated total weight of 100 lbs for an average family of two
• 1/8 beef at an estimated total weight of 50 lbs for an average family of one

Buying for a family of eight or splitting an order among neighbors? In that case, one whole beef at an estimated 400 pounds is a great option. In other words, in the case of a half cow estimated freezer needs would be 6-7 cubic feet.

What's the right type of freezer for my half cow storage needs?

In many regards, choosing the right freezer for your half cow is a matter of personal preference and depends on your space and access habits. That being said, below are a few pros and cons for the two standard freezer types to consider before making a decision. 

Option 1: Upright freezers for vertical half cow storage

Pros: 

• Easy to organize
• Easy to access full inventory 
• Requires less floor space

Cons:

• Less usable freezer space
• Less efficient (cold air escapes more quickly)
• Greater risk of door being left open

Option 2: Chest freezers for horizontal half cow storage

Pros:

• Door always closes shut with the help of gravity
• More useable freezer space
• More efficient (cold air doesn't escape as quickly)

Cons:

• More difficult to organize and keep organized
• Difficult to access full inventory
• Requires more floor space

Four tips to protect your investment:

• If you have the key and lock to your freezer make it a rule to use it, so you are sure the freezer is shut closed and protected from children accidentally opening it.
• If you don’t have a lock and key, come up with a creative way to ensure the door stays shut at all times.
• Purchase an alarm system to notify you if your freezer temperature is too high. We personally like using this brand: https://wirelesstag.net 
• You can usually save a lot of money buying used. If you’re considering a used freezer, just make sure to test it before you buy it and check that the seals around the door don’t have any gaps.

Best of luck as in choosing a new freezer for your half cow! Please post your questions or comments below – we'd love to hear about your experience putting our tips to use.