Back To Earth Farm
Asheboro
5.0(6)Piedmont, North Carolina grass-fed beef. Whole cow $8.35/lb, half cow $8.85/lb hanging weight. Serves Greensboro, Charlotte, Raleigh-Durham areas.
Half a cow in North Carolina costs $2,200-2,800 ($9.50-13.00/lb take-home). There are 37 local suppliers to choose from. Best time to buy: May-June. Both grass-fed and grain-finished options available.
Jump to the 37 suppliers ↓See the full half a cow price breakdown →North Carolina is undergoing a profound agricultural transformation from a 'nursery' state (raising calves for Midwest feedlots) to a growing direct-to-consumer market. The state maintains approximately 720,000 cattle, with production shaped by the 'Fescue Belt' ecology and the legacy of tobacco farmers transitioning to livestock after the 2004 quota buyout.
Half cow: $2,200-2,800
Hanging weight: $4.75-7.97/lb
Take-home: $9.50-13.00/lb
Peak season: May-June
The 'spring flush' (late May through June) is the premier harvest window—cattle gorge on lush, reproductive-phase grasses with maximum energy content before summer heat sets in. The fall rebound (October-November) offers a secondary peak as temperatures cool and fescue enters its second growth phase. Avoid August-September when the 'summer slump' from fescue toxicosis can reduce meat quality.
Black Angus, Charolais, Simmental, Senepol, Belted Galloway
Typical practice: Mixed (pasture-raised, grain-finished)
MeatSuite.com (managed by NC Choices/NC State Extension) is the definitive platform for finding bulk beef by zip code. In dairy-heavy areas, verify you're buying beef breeds—Holstein beef is common and has different characteristics. Live animal purchases are sales tax exempt in NC under G.S. 105-164.13(4b).
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We'll connect you with a nearby farm, butcher, or co-op selling quarter, half, or whole beef. Free, no accounts, and only one farm gets your contact details.
These farms have half a beef for sale in North Carolina — most also sell 1/2 and 1/4 cow shares direct from the farm, priced by hanging weight.
Asheboro
5.0(6)Piedmont, North Carolina grass-fed beef. Whole cow $8.35/lb, half cow $8.85/lb hanging weight. Serves Greensboro, Charlotte, Raleigh-Durham areas.
Monroe
5.0(18)North Carolina and Georgia cattle farm specializing in Wagyu beef. Premium quality from a dedicated family operation.
Monroe
5.0(6)Simpson's Quality Meats offers fixed-price eighth, quarter, half, and whole shares of locally raised, pasture-grazed, grain-finished beef near Monroe. Farm pickup is by appointment and the current site does not offer delivery.
Chapel Hill
4.8(871)Chapel Hill, North Carolina farm offering whole, half, quarter, or eighth cow. Pricing based on packaged weight (not hanging weight) includes processing.
Stedman
4.7(14)Stedman, North Carolina farm selling cow bundles from whole to quarter. Delivery within 100 miles of Fayetteville NC.
Ayden
Ample Farm offers quarter and half beef that is grass-fed and grass-finished. Shares can be collected at the farm or delivered free within 30 miles; the Ayden map point is approximate. Its 2026 processing dates are tentative, so confirm the next available share.
New Bern
Anderson Family Farms near New Bern offers quarter, half and whole beef raised on pasture with grain finishing, returned directly to the buyer after processing. Arrange pickup or delivery with the farm.
Lawndale
Beam Family Farms offers eighth, quarter, half and whole grass-finished beef. Buyers arrange pickup and receive an estimated date when reserving, sometimes several months ahead. The map point represents the approximate Lawndale area.
Barnardsville
Big Ivy Beef Cattle Co. offers custom-cut halves and wholes of beef. Buyers work through a cut sheet and arrange collection with the farm shop. Its cattle are raised on pasture and finished with grain.
Mill Spring
Caitlyn Farms offers quarter, half and whole grass-finished beef. Buyers arrange farm pickup by appointment and confirm available cuts before ordering. The map point represents the approximate Mill Spring area.
Lillington
Lillington farm selling a custom half beef supplied by named partner Randleman Farms. These Angus/Simmental cattle are pasture raised and finished with haylage and grain. Half-beef orders are collected at CATHIS Farm after processing; general home-delivery advertising does not apply to this product. Confirm the next allocation.
Benson
Family farm in Johnston County offering quarter and half beef packages. Farm pickup is available; processing dates and any arranged meeting location must be confirmed.
Concord
Concord area North Carolina farm offering large-size beef quantities for families looking to stock up or split with others. Hanging weight typically 600-700 lbs for whole cow.
New Bern
Eastern North Carolina Beef offers standard or custom-cut half and whole beef. Orders are collected in New Bern, with delivery available by arrangement; the map point is approximate. Ask about the next allocation because same-day pickup and delivery are unavailable.
Goldston
Hayes family farm in Goldston offering grass-fed and grass-finished Angus beef in eighth, quarter, half and whole shares. Buyers collect processed beef at Piedmont Custom Meats after notification. The map is an approximate Goldston town point; arrange the exact processor collection location and next allocation before ordering.
Marshall
Farm House Beef offers quarters and halves of grass-fed beef. Orders are collected at the farm after arranging the purchase by phone or email. The map point represents the approximate Marshall area.
Hendersonville
French Broad River Cattle Farms in Hendersonville sells quarter and half beef. Contact the farm by phone or email to order and arrange pickup or delivery.
Mooresville
North Carolina beef farm offering half and whole cows at competitive pricing. Quality local beef direct from the farm.
Fairview
Hickory Nut Gap offers quarter-cow shares of grass-finished beef through its linked farm store. Buyers collect at the Fairview farm; the product warns that processing can take up to four weeks and contents may vary.
Jacksonville
JS Lowland Cattle offers quarter beef through its farm store, with pickup at 228 Webster Lane in Jacksonville. The store shows low stock for the deposit and out of stock for the full-payment quarter. Confirm the allocation and pickup date, since the October pickup notice does not specify a year.
Monroe
Keziah Family Farms raises pasture-ranged livestock near Monroe and accepts preorders for eighth, quarter, half, and whole beef shares. Published prices include an assortment of steaks, ground beef, roasts, stew cuts, bones, fat, and organs.
Mount Olive
Kornegay Hereford Farms sells grass-fed Hereford beef from single cuts up to a whole cow, out of a farm store built in a renovated tobacco barn at Mount Olive, North Carolina. A half cow is reserved with a $400 deposit and runs about 200 lb, needing roughly 8 cubic feet of freezer space.
Goldsboro
Lockwood Farms offers eighth, quarter and half beef shares through its linked farm store. Buyers collect at the farm and should arrange the timing before traveling. Shares are reservations, and the store currently labels quarter and half stock as low.
Cove City
McCoy Cattle Farms offers quarter, half and whole freezer beef with cut preferences. Buyers collect at the farm or arrange local delivery. A deposit reserves the order; confirm the next processing date and whether delivery reaches the buyer's address.
Columbus
Melvin Hill Meats sells eighth, quarter, half and whole beef shares through its farm butcher shop. Buyers can collect at the Columbus shop or arrange delivery, with harvest and fulfillment timing discussed after reservation.
Efland
Efland farm selling grass-fed beef by the quarter and half. The farm arranges Saturday delivery around Burlington, Hillsborough, Chapel Hill, Durham and Raleigh, or a meeting at the delivery-area edge. Sides have a long wait list, commonly six months to a year; no delivery date is guaranteed. Whole beef is not currently offered.
Eastover
Veteran-owned family ranch offering grain-finished beef by the quarter, half or whole. Delivery is advertised within a two-hour drive of Eastover; confirm arrangements and processing availability. Map shows approximate Eastover locality.
Zionville
The Greene family raises cattle on pasture with some grain at North Fork Farm in Zionville. Quarter, half and whole beef orders can be custom cut, with a published preparation estimate of about two to three weeks after commitment. Arrange pickup at the farm store or ask about delivery in the Boone and Banner Elk areas. Confirm the current processing slot and collection arrangements directly; delivery to Bristol is not established.
Ayden
Oak Cattle Farms offers quarter, half and whole beef with grass or grain finishing options. Buyers collect at the farm after notification or arrange delivery within 100 miles for a fee. The Ayden map point is approximate; contact the farm for its next processing date.
Burgaw
Piney Woods Ranch offers quarter beef from grass-fed and grass-finished cattle. Arrange collection through the farm or Lanier Hardware and Rental in Burgaw, and ask for the next available quarter. The Burgaw map point is approximate.
Snow Hill
Rainbow Meadow Farms offers whole beef processed to the buyer's specifications. Arrange pickup at the farm or one of its markets by phone or through its ordering route. The Snow Hill map point is approximate, and a current processing slot needs confirmation.
Morganton
Russell Family Farms in Morganton sells quarters and custom-cut halves of beef. Contact the farm to order and arrange pickup or delivery. The map shows the approximate Morganton area.
Leicester
Neal and Ava Morgan’s family farm in Leicester offers custom-cut half and whole beef by direct order. Cattle are born and raised on the farm, grazing pasture and finishing on farm-grown grass, hay and corn with supplemental brewer’s grains. The farm store is open by appointment. Contact the farm to confirm availability, processing and collection timing before finalizing an order.
Newport
Shenk Family Farm offers quarter, half and whole grass-fed and grass-finished beef. Reserve a share and arrange the pickup day and location with the farm. The Newport map point is approximate, and the processing schedule needs confirmation.
Vilas
Vilas family farm offering eighth, quarter and half beef shares. Shipley raises cattle on pasture with grain supplementation and also sources calves from regional family farms. Quarter and half shares require pickup at the farm; only shares up to an eighth are offered for shipping. Contact the farm to confirm half-share availability and a collection date before ordering.
Swannanoa
Warren Wilson College Farm offers grass-finished beef quarters as three preset beef-share boxes. Fall 2026 orders are due November 9 for pickup November 14 from 10am to 1pm at 165 South Lane. The map point marks the farm’s published business address at 108 South Lane.
Turkey
Wilders offers quarter, half and whole Wagyu beef shares. Arrange pickup at its Turkey or Clayton store, or shipping within the continental United States; the Turkey map point is approximate. The quarter-share page shows sold out, and the team confirms fulfillment dates and locations.
Explore suppliers in neighboring states - many offer delivery or are worth the drive.
A half cow in NC costs $2,200-2,800 total. At $5.50/lb hanging weight (360 lbs), you pay ~$1,980 for the meat, plus $50 kill fee (half share) and $1.35/lb processing (~$486), totaling ~$2,516. Your take-home yield is about 234 lbs, making effective cost ~$10.75/lb for everything from ground beef to ribeyes.
Yellow fat is a hallmark of cattle finished on lush, green pasture, common during North Carolina's 'spring flush' (May-June). The color comes from beta-carotene, a pigment in fresh grass that cattle store in their fat. Grain-fed beef has white fat because grain is low in beta-carotene. It indicates high Vitamin A and E content—a quality marker, not a defect.
NC lies in the heart of the Fescue Belt where toxic Kentucky-31 fescue dominates pastures. The grass harbors an endophyte fungus that produces toxins causing 'fescue toxicosis'—cattle can't regulate body temperature in summer heat, reducing weight gain. This creates the 'summer slump' quality risk. Ask producers about their fescue management strategy.
Informally, yes. However, under Custom Exempt regulations, the 'owner' of the animal is the client. Designate one person as the primary buyer to pay the farmer and submit the cut sheet, then settle costs privately. Asking a processor to split a quarter into two separate orders often incurs extra fees or is refused.
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