Seven Boggs Farms Postings on http://edgefieldsheep.com/bb/index.php
#1 Posted: Wed Jun 20, 2007 10:29 am
Since this (Retail Marketing) thread is off to a slow start, I thought I'd post my experiences of on-farm meat sales catering to whoever happened to show up. The customers were from several ethnic groups who usually came because of having seen the sheep while driving down the highway, and then by word of mouth sharing of the sheep farm location with friends.
Although I originally tried to cultivate these sales, I have long since abandoned it - and in fact - now have a large prominent sign in the driveway (and on my Website) announcing NO sheep for sale!
It was a cause of annoyance which exceeded the monetary rewards; although a more patient, more tolerant person might find it worthwhile since the demand is definitely there if you're willing to accommodate it.
The problems were that they always showed up unannounced (usually on Sunday morning). "They" being defined as 3 to 4 men, only one of whom would speak in broken English. They would never reveal their name, domestic address, or country of origin (maybe that was none of my business?).
Additionally, they expected the butcher lambs to immediately be brought in from the pasture; and then upon selecting one and asking the price, would want to argue about the price (no matter what it was). I was unwilling to waste time haggling and would state that the price was firm: Pay it or leave. While none ever left, they obviously did not appreciate the direct approach to pricing.
Then the worst part would begin - and I shall not elaborate - suffice to say that it never appeared that any of these folks had experience in killing a lamb, much less in skinning and cutting one up, and that these tasks were accomplished inefficiently and with what I regarded as poor hygiene.
Before abandoning this market altogether, I tried to improve their chances of success by providing sharp knives, a meat saw, a rope/pulley/gambrel, water hose, cutting table, plastic garbage can for the offal, etc., but it didn't help much.
This market can probably be developed just about anywhere, primarily via word of mouth after a few successful sales. Just be prepared for what I might best describe as "culture clash."
Frank in southwest Louisiana
#2 Posted: Fri Jun 22, 2007 6:35 am
As a marketing aid, I send out an Email Newsletter to my Farmer's Market customers prior to each visit. Not only does this remind them to expect me, it allows me to influence sales by virtue of which lamb cuts I feature in the recipes.
I tried to post a Newsletter copy in here, but it looked awful. If anyone wants to see a sample and will email me at boggs@camtel.net with the word Newsletter as the Subject, I will send the May 19th Issue.
I offer that Issue because it contains the recipe "Grilled Lamb Burgers" which was served with apparent great success (I had to work and couldn't attend) at the June 2007 Annual Gathering of the Southcentral Katahdin Hair Sheep Association (SCKA).
Frank
#3 Posted: Sat Jun 23, 2007 2:18 pm
Anyone interested in a recent photo of my Farmer's Market setup may visit:
http://www.flickr.com/photo_zoom.gne?id=602700293&size=m
The photo is included below as well.
The freezer is a 7 basket / 70" wide / 19.5 cu.ft. model mounted on a homemade steel frame with 10" pneumatic casters. The white table on the right is lifted up over the freezer and attached to the frame and becomes the transport cover. I pull the covered freezer up ramps into the truckbed with a manual worm drive winch mounted on the truck and powered by an 18 volt DeWalt portable drill. A 4,000 watt 12 VDC > 120 VAC inverter is used for electrical power during transit. I have a Canon S9000 Inkjet that will print directly onto poster board cut to 13" x 22".
Frank
#4 Posted: Sun Jun 24, 2007 8:15 am
Janet asked: "How many whole lambs do you feel you have to sell to justify setting up at a Farmer's Market?"
Of all the many things I investigated, pondered, and worried about during the 12 - 15 month period of thought and calculation that preceded my 2004 entry into the Farmer's Market (FM) game, that was not one of them. While lambs-sold-per-month is a critical factor in the overall success of any FM venture, it is an item over which you have little or no control - so why add that calculation to your pre-market worries?
All FM's have some pent up demand for lamb, and more demand can be created by the effective marketing of a superb product, but lambs-sold-per-month is, in my opinion, a function of the number and type of weekly patrons at any particular FM, and is more or less fixed.
If I may lift three sentences (out of context) from my Website, they are:
1. No matter what your farm produces best, it will not please everyone. Some new buyers will become loyal customers of your lamb and some will not return.
2. You can profitably produce only what your pastures dictate -- then you have to sell that product to potential customers one by one.
3. An additional reality that must be taken into consideration is the fact that only a small fraction of the general public will ever become regular lamb patrons.
I do not believe there is any type of marketing survey that could reliably predict lamb demand, either existing or creatable. You have to focus on those items that are within your control, make the FM commitment, and hope for the best on lambs-sold-per-month.
The most important factor within your control is pricing. I shall elaborate on that in a few days when I get another burst of typing energy.
Frank in SW Louisiana
#5 Posted: Sun Jun 24, 2007 1:05 pm
Bill asked, "Did you need to make any alterations to your vehicle's charging system in order to run the inverter?"
No. I have a Ford F250 Diesel which comes with a heavy duty alternator and two large batteries. I cut the clamps off of two sets of 4 gauge copper jumper cables and ran one from each battery underneath the truck and through the back cab floor to the inverter which has accommodations for two 12 VDC+ input cables and two 12VDC- input cables (and two120 VAC output plugs). I run an extension cord from the inverter in the back cab through the window to the freezer in the truckbed. You can definitely tell when the freezer starts up during transit because the headlights dim for a couple of seconds.
"What do you use for a power source on site, or do they have a place for you to plug in?"
Yes. Both FM's that I visit have 120VAC readily available. In the Market photo, note the orange cord dangling down from the canopy.
Frank
#6 Posted: Sun Jun 24, 2007 1:26 pm
Although I had previously promised to "elaborate" on pricing, the following information is all that I care to share at the present time. Thanks.
After nearly three years of FM experience, listed below are the 11 lamb cuts that we keep in stock (We once offered 17 cuts). You may be surprised that we don't offer Lamb Chops. The reason is lack of demand -- probably because if you do find "Lamb" in your local meat case, it's most likely Chops.
We usually sell out of Racks, Shanks, and Crown Roasts quickly; so they're probably due for a price increase. I plan to start offering a 7 to 8 lb "Family Grilling Pack" containing Mignon, Patties, Sausage, and Riblets (new) -- all preseasoned and ready to Thaw & Throw (on the grill).
At the prices below, a pasture raised yearling (Yes, my customers know they're yearlings and not lambs.) having a hot hanging carcass weight (HHCW) of 50 - 55 pounds will average at least $330 in retail package price with total processing costs (live lamb to frozen packages) running $55 - $65 each.
Retail carcass value varies somewhat depending on the cuts needed for inventory replacement. In other words, are we grinding lamb for Ground Lamb at $5.79 per pound or for Lamb Mignon at $12.49 per pound? Processing costs depend on the complexity of the order, i.e. Shanks are cheap to cut and wrap, Mignon is expensive to make.
Retail carcass value seems to plummet exponentially when HHCW drops below 40 - 45 pounds and the processing costs are about the same. It costs a fixed $24 to convert a live lamb of any weight into a HHC and incinerate the offal.
As a guide for profit from a FM venture of your own, you must calculate individual cut prices per pound so as to yield a minimum of $300 in gross retail sales per lamb. I don't have any handy guidelines for carcass yield percentage of each of the various cuts.
1. Rack of Lamb. $15.99/lb.
2. Lamb Mignon*. $12.49/lb.
3. Leg of Lamb. $8.79/lb. (Bone in, sirloin still attached with shank end trimmed to about 4 lbs.).
4. Spicy Lamb Link Sausage. $7.99/lb. (Italian seasonings with Romano cheese, etc.).
5. Mild Lamb Link Sausage. $7.99/lb. (Sun dried tomato and garlic seasonings, etc.).
6. Lamburger Patties. $6.99/lb.
7. Ground Lamb. $5.79/lb.
8. Lamb Shanks. $5.99/lb.
9. Crown Shoulder Roast**. $8.99/lb.
10. Lamb Kidneys. $5.99/lb. One guy has a standing order for all I can produce.
11. Lamb Hearts. $4.19/lb. The same guy has a standing order for all I can produce.
Lamb Liver. I give it away to the occasional customer who asks about it.
* Our Lamb Mignon is made by deboning an entire lamb (after the Rack of Lamb and Lamb Shanks have been reserved), mincing the various muscle masses into different textures to give the reassembled product a "mouth feel" similar to a steak rather than a ground patty. The meat is recombined with our proprietary seasonings which are specially selected to accentuate the unique flavor of Lamb, stuffed into a 3.25 inch diameter fibrous casing, semi frozen, sliced into 1.25 inch thick medallions, casing removed, wrapped with premium bacon, then vacuum packed and quickly frozen.
** Our Crown Shoulder Roast is made by deboning / seasoning a Lamb Shoulder, and squaring / frenching / seasoning a prime section of Lamb Ribs; then tying the frenched ribs around the shoulder to make a "crown roast." The roast is preseasoned and ready to thaw, bake, and serve. Included with each roast is a free disposable meat thermometer with user instructions.
Frank in SW Louisiana.
#7 Posted: Sun Jul 08, 2007 11:57 am
I decided to make one last post in this thread. On June 25, 2007, I took ten yearling rams for processing into individual frozen packages. The quantity ordered for each cut listed below reflected replacement inventory needs. As mentioned on June 24th, retail carcass value varies somewhat depending on the cuts needed. Are we grinding lamb for Ground Lamb at $5.79/lb or for Lamb Mignon at $12.49/lb?
Live animal weights were unavailable. The hot hanging carcass weights (HHCW) averaged 58.8 pounds. The total processor cost for all materials, labor, offal incineration, supplies and taxes was $574.83. Adding $20 to this price for the 3.25 inch fibrous Mignon casing and two kinds of Sausage seasonings which I buy in bulk and furnish as required ups the processing cost to $59.48 each or $1.01 per pound of HHCW.
The total retail value of the packaged meat was $3,611.85 or $361.19 per yearling or $6.14 per pound of HHCW.
The gross value added per lamb by processing is the total retail package value minus the on-farm value of the lamb minus processing costs:
$361.19 - $125.00* - $59.48 = $176.71 per lamb.
*Note: I could never regularly and reliably sell ten lambs at a time on the farm for $125 each.
The dollar values of each cut were:
Leg of Lamb > $335.51
Lamb Shanks > $209.61
Rack of Lamb > $690.54
Lamb Shoulder Crown Roast > $548.58
Spicy Lamb Sausage > $364.88
Mild Lamb Sausage > $205.32
Lamb Mignon > $642.63
Lamburger Patties > $241.36
Ground Lamb > $341.61
Lamb Hearts > $18.27
Lamb Kidneys > $13.54
The lamb processor thoughtfully provides the economic data summary presented above.
Frank in SW Louisiana
The End