Will it make the price of beef any cheaper?
Because right now,it ranks right up there with buying gold stocks!!
No longer affordable for many families unless your buying hamburger!

Well then Andy, buy from oneof the local producers (the meat will be inspected and slaughtered to better atandards than your store meat may have been) and you will not pay very much. As a producer all I can say is that a: the price of food has NOT gone up with inflation and b: the high prices you refer to do NOT trickle down to cattle ranchers. Check out recent auction prices if you doubt me.

I agree caranmacil.
I buy from a farmer about twice a year.
Beef and buffalo.
The grocery stores are insane on prices and the butcher shops in town are not much better but I will give my money to the privately own butcher shops before the big grocery retailers.
The local producers are a better deal, but I wonder why more people don't use them?

I think there is the convenience thing, most farmers sell by the side and people dont all have the freezers (nor do they want to think they eat that much meat in a year). As well there seems to be a perception that the meat may not be 'clean'. I for one welcomed the new rules regarding slaughter for sale. As long as the message gets out to the public it should help the farmer with his gate sales.

caranmicil is spot on. Ranchers and farmers in western Canada are leaving or going out of business because the returns are not adequate to sustain them and their families. It is totally ridiculous, the cost of everything goes up and up, yet we expect our food to be cheap, and it is, relatively. The new slaughter standards have done nothing to help the rancher, in fact they make things worse. Before, if the auction prices were too low, one could at least sell (some) at the farm gate, and get something other than a trucking bill for the transport of your animals to the stock yards or auction. In their zeal to be seen as protecting the public, the government, in their heavy handed way, have crippled the industry. I'm referring to the whole scenario, from U.S. industry causing border closures to prohibitions on farm slaughtering and processing.
In my experience, Jane and Joe consumer do not even know where their meat comes from. It magically appears in their favourite superstore, all nicely wrapped in cellophane and styrofoam, and that is what they are conditioned to expect. It is the stores that make all the profit on meat. The local butchers do pretty well too, but I will bet money that they pay fair wages to full time employees, they all live here, and that they care one hell of a lot more about what you put in your mouth than Mr. J. Pattison (Savon) or the owners of Costco or Superstore. So, BUY LOCAL.
Support your local rancher and or butcher.
Pay a little more (maybe) go out of your way, make that extra stop and buy from people who live here and have a stake in the city or area. You will certainly reap benefits that will make up for the paltry inconveniance of having to shop at more than one store to get all your groceries.
metalman.

As far as I know,many big retailers now use what is called "block ready" beef.
It comes in a large chunks in plastic bags and is in a liquid that contains tenderizers and something to keep it nice and red.
I am sure there are exceptions to this but, I would love to have a look in their coolers!
And the prices are insane!
Many of them don't break down full sides of fresh beef any more like the smaller private butcher shops do.
The farmers/ranchers of course use only fresh beef that they have hung and aged themselves.
Guess which one I won't buy no matter how convenient it is?

BUY LOCAL. SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL RANCHER and VEGETABLE FARMER.
metalman.