Do you sell beef, pork, chicken, lamb, or other types of meat from an online storefront? Selling meat online comes with its own set of challenges that can take some effort and creativity to overcome.
We drew on interviews with two farmers, Robinette Farms and Brookford Farm, plus our own experience with online storefronts, to create “A Meat Vendor’s Guide to Online Sales,” a free resource for local farmers looking to selling more meat online.
Here’s what you’ll find in the guide:
–Managing variable weights and accurate pricing with an online store
–The importance of inventory tracking for accurate costing and food safety requirements
–Strategies for selling all cuts — not just the steaks and roasts!
–Handling bulk buys and deposits
–Strategies to encourage larger orders — including bundles and meat shares
–Managing logistics for efficient packing and delivery
–And more!
Download “A Meat Vendor’s Guide to Online Sales”
Download the Guide
Download “A Meat Vendor’s Guide to Online Sales”
Download the GuideMeet Our Featured Farmers
Robinette Farms in Martell, Nebraska, was founded by Chloe Diegel and Alex McKiernan more than 20 years ago. In 2022, Chloe and Alex launched a food hub dedicated to connecting their community to over 30 local farmers and ranchers. Partnering with other farms has allowed them to focus on the most profitable and enjoyable foods to produce, including certified organic greens and microgreens, and beef that is 100% grass-fed and grass-finished on their pasture. Robinette sells a la carte through the online storefront and runs a year-round customizable CSA.
One of the things that drew me to Local Food Marketplace was being able to record meat sales by the actual weight instead of having to group things by weight ranges and sell them that way – it is a super important feature for meat sales.” —Chloe Diegel, Robinette Farms
Brookford Farm in Canterbury, New Hampshire, is a 600-acre diversified farm with pasture land for cattle, pigs, lambs, and chickens, plus more than 35 acres of certified organic vegetable production. It has been in its current location — a former sod farm that is being lovingly returned to crop production using sustainable land management practices — since 2012. The cows and lamb are 100% grass-fed and the pigs and chickens are supplemented with non-GMO grain. Brookford maintains a year-round CSA with over 250 members and sells products wholesale to restaurants and retail stores.
Having nice pictures of the meat on the online store is what really sells it. Since we are a grass-fed farm, it’s important for us to show the amount of marbling we have and to turn people on to cuts that they don’t know about, like hanger steaks and flank steaks.” —Tyler Dunnais, Brookford Farm
