Review of Buy a Cow – Premium Beef from Local Farmers

We are always trying to find healthier ways to eat without compromising on taste in this house, especially now I have started Slimming World (more of that in another post). This isn’t so easy when you are working to a budget and I am fully aware that most organic produce costs more than we can afford. When Buy a Cow recently offered us the opportunity to review their produce, I was more than willing to try their premium beef from local farmers.

Who are Buy a Cow?

Buy a Cow is a company run by people who feel strongly about making sure that premium meant is healthy and globally sustainable as well as being full of taste.

Together with members of their community, you have the ability to crowdfund a cow. Once the money needed has been reached, the cow is butchered, dry-aged and then each person who has contributed will be allocated a portion to be delivered to their door.

This means that you are able to trace the source, ensures it is environmentally sustainable – no waste! – and cuts out the supermarket which then reduces the overheads and cost to you as a consumer.

On top of all of this, it helps the smaller farmers earn more money.

Where did our meat come from?

Our farmer, Matt Lampey, together with his father, Albert, is based in South Chard which is not far from us at all. He has been raising cattle and sheep on their 165 acre farm set along the River Axe, for more than 19 years now.

Albert grew up on a farm and, even though he worked in an office for much of his life, he could not escape his love for the countryside and bought a smallholding after his married his wife 45 years ago. Matt then grew up here and decided on farming as a career.  When he left school 18 years ago, they moved to their new farm and Matt served an agricultural apprenticeship. Now he and his father run the farm together.

Their herd is made up of cattle which are raised for beef instead of milk. This means that the calves, usually born in Spring, get to stay with the herd. They spend the Summer grazing in the fields alongside their mothers then, in Autumn, everyone moves to large straw-bedded sheds.

Albert and Matt allow the herd to expand naturally. They let the bulls run with the cows in Summer and they don’t use artificial insemination. The size of the herd has grown over time and now averages a very respectable 300-400 animals.

Most of the cattle are born on the farm and spend their whole lives there. They enjoy a stress-free lifestyle and are completely traceable from birth. The cows don’t have to travel far when it’s time for slaughter: they are killed humanely at a local abattoir, just half a mile away.

They keep a mixture of cattle breeds at their farm, including Limousins, British Blue, Shorthorns and Charolais. Their policy is to breed all of their cattle on the farm, including the cows that are used for breeding. Future ‘mothers’ are carefully selected for their quietness and ‘ease of calving’ history.

What meat did we receive?

We received a large premium box weighing 6.7kg. Our cow was a regular-sized Black Angus.  The meat cuts consisted of the following:

• • Rib Steak – 1 cut
  • Fillet Steak – 2 cuts
  • Sirloin Steak – 1 cut
  • Roast – 1 piece
  • Topside Steak – 2 cuts
  • Minute Steak – 2 cuts
  • Rump Steak – 2 cuts
  • Braising Steak – 4 cuts
  • Stir-fry Strips – 1 portion
  • Diced Beef – 2 portions
  • Steak Burger – 8 portions
  • Beef Mince – 4 portions
  • Beef Burgers – 6 burgers
  • Chipolata Sausages – 12 sausages

What other benefits do Buy a Cow offer?

• FREE home delivery to postcodes throughout England
• All cows are grass fed on lush pastures
• Cut out the middleman – no need for Supermarket overheads!
• No added water, preservatives or other nasties
• Matured for succulence
• Only takes up half a freezer drawer
• Only £1.92 per serving
• Biodegradeable packaging

What are the costs?

Our box cost a total of £89.95 including the free delivery. I have to say that I think that this is excellent given the quality, amount you receive and how long it lasts.

What was the taste like?

The taste has been nothing but excellent. Each time we have had a meal using the beef from Buy a Cow, we have all commented on how tasty it is and how good our meal is. Not just once, but several times during the course of eating it! You really cannot compromise on great quality when you are eating meat. It is going to be hard to go back to supermarket eating so it looks like we may very well be sticking with Buy a Cow!

I have made a number of recipes including a beef casserole and bolognese. We also had a big steak meal with chips and are looking forward to our roast this weekend.

Our final thoughts

The box is very easy to order and arrived well-packaged with biodegradable and compostable materials. This means that you are not only caring about the butchering but also the environment.

We have been very impressed with the whole service. The food and what Buy a Cow stand for are important messages to send out to every family.

We are very happy to thoroughly recommend Buy a Cow to anyone who eats meat.

Disclosure: Thank you to the lovely people at Buy a Cow for sending us the premium meat box in return for this review. Please note that all words, images and opinions have been formed by the owner of this blog. They have not been influenced in any way. Please do not reproduce any of the content or images on this post without prior agreement from Verily Victoria Vocalises.