Profitable Meat Marketing Workshops
Event Details
Cornell announces new Meat Price Calculator and Profitable Meat Marketing workshops for direct marketing livestock farmers
The Cornell Program on Agribusiness and Rural Development announces that a new, improved version of the Cornell Meat Price Calculator (MPC) is available for free use at www.meatsuite.com. The MPC, originally launched in May 2018, is a user-friendly online tool that allows farmers to set prices that ensure they reach farm financial goals. The new version, launched in March 2022, allows NY farmers to create a free account and save their data. This way, as their costs change over time, they can revisit the site and make adjustments to their pricing to maintain profitability goals.
The release of the improved MPC comes at a time when both farmers and consumers face increasing costs. Inflation of grocery store meat prices may lead to increased consumer interest in locally raised meats. Likewise, increasing input costs for farms will cause farms to revisit their current pricing. In the summer of 2021, Cornell researchers observed meat prices from 17 NY farms and 7 Ithaca-area grocery stores. They found that farm store and farmers market prices were typically lower than grocery store prices for similar products. It may be that some farms do not account for all costs or include sufficient profit margins relative to grocery store competition. The MPC offers a user-friendly approach to account for production, processing, and marketing costs and then set prices to reach a profit goal. To read a short article about the 2021 meat price observations, click here. (https://www.meatsuite.com/calculator/about/docs.php)
To support the launch of the new MPC, a series of "Profitable Meat Marketing" and "How to Use the Cornell Meat Price Calculator" workshops are planned for locations around the state and online. At the workshops, MPC developer, Matt LeRoux, Extension Associate in Cornell's Dyson School of Economics and Management, will present on marketing strategy and technique, pricing logic, and demonstrate how to use the new Meat Price Calculator. The workshops will be relevant to any farms selling meat directly to consumer, whether in bulk or by-the-cut.
Raising prices can feel like a challenging task. The Cornell Meat Price Calculator aims to simplify the process and the Profitable Meat Marketing workshops prepare farms for successful marketing and pricing. A complete list of locations and dates, as well as registration details follow.
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Announcements
Cash Rent and Custom Harvest Survey
To date, there is limited information available about rental rates and fees for crop harvesting. Farms can use this valuable information for their farm business planning to help improve decision making and profitability.Farmers Can Join MeatSuite For Free!
MeatSuite.com is a free resource provided by Cornell University where NY meat farmers can create a farm profile and list their bulk (wholes, halves, quarters) and bundled (i.e. Grilling Bundle) meat products.Why should farmers join?
1. It's free and easy!
2. Connect with more local customers. In the past year the MeatSuite.com farm directory had 8,300 visits from New York consumers. Farm profiles get as many as 25 views per month from potential local customers. We also spotlight MeatSuite farms on social media and bring attention and purchases to farms through highlights and giveaways.
How do I join?
Farmers can visit https://www.meatsuite.com/farmers/ to create a free farm profile. You must list at least one product for your farm's profile to go live. You'll also have access to Cornell's free Meat Price Calculator, a helpful tool for pricing your meat to make a profit.
While you're on MeatSuite, check out the "Creating Consumer-Friendly Bulk Meats" publication on the log-in page. It has tips on how to create bulk meat products that are easier for first-time buyers to say "yes" to.
If you have any questions as you create your farm profile or products, we're here to help! Please email Matt LeRoux at mnl28@cornell.edu.