Live Weight vs. Hanging Weight

One of the biggest surprises for first-time farm-direct customers is that
the animal’s live weight, carcass weight and the amount of packaged beef
placed in the freezer are three different numbers.

Live weight

Live weight is simply what the animal weighs while alive.

Carcass or hanging weight

After slaughter, the hide, head, blood, feet and internal organs are removed.
The remaining dressed carcass weighs considerably less than the live animal.
This weight may be called carcass weight, dressed weight or hanging weight
in farm-direct conversations.

Packaged weight

The carcass loses additional weight during aging, trimming, deboning and
cutting. The amount of finished beef that goes into your freezer will
therefore be lower than the hanging weight.

Why this matters when comparing prices

A price per pound of hanging weight cannot be directly compared with a
grocery-store price per pound of packaged meat. They are measuring different
things.