We Bought Our Beef Direct From A Local Farmer. Here's What We Learnt.
If you've followed Ethically Kate for a while, you'll know we've spent years encouraging people to think more carefully about the impact of what they buy. Sometimes that means buying less. Sometimes it means choosing products that last longer. Sometimes it means eating more plants.
This article isn't here to convince anyone to eat meat.
But many New Zealand families already do, and if that's you, I think there's another worthwhile question to ask:
Is there a better way to buy it?
That question led us to Greener Grasses, a regenerative beef farm in Northland that sells directly to households.
Before ordering, we had plenty of questions. How much meat do you actually get? Will it fit in the freezer? Is it good value? And, perhaps most importantly, would we actually do it again?
When I started researching, I realised there wasn't one article that simply walked through the experience from the perspective of an ordinary family. So that's what this is - not a sales pitch, just everything you should know before buying your first quarter beast.
Meet Greener Grasses
One of the reasons we wanted to work with Greener Grasses is because their philosophy feels very familiar to us.
They're not trying to convince people to eat more meat. They're helping the people who already do make a more thoughtful choice about where it comes from.
Greener Grasses farms using regenerative principles, which means they're focused on improving the health of the land over time rather than simply producing as much as possible. Healthy soils, thriving ecosystems and careful land management all play an important role in how they farm. Like most things in sustainability, it's not about finding a perfect solution, but continually working towards a better one.
For us, that's important.
If we're choosing to eat beef, we'd much rather support farmers who are actively caring for their land and animals than buy a tray from the supermarket with little understanding of where it came from or how it was produced.
Selling directly to families is part of that philosophy too. It reconnects people with the farm, the farmer and the story behind their food. We could ask questions, understand how our beef had been raised and feel confident about the values of the people producing it.
Greener Grasses also works alongside Out the Farm Gate, helping connect New Zealanders with farmers selling directly to consumers. So even if you don't live in their delivery area, much of what you'll read here still applies.
Our Experience Before Buying Beef This Way
Buying meat directly from a farmer wasn't completely new to us. Over the years we've bought three homekill lambs, including one we raised ourselves (on a friend’s property) and had professionally butchered. Those experiences gave us a real appreciation for using as much of the animal as possible.
Beef, however, felt like a different proposition.
A quarter beast sounded enormous, there were far more cuts to choose from, and we weren't entirely sure what half of them were.
If that's you too, don't worry.
We felt exactly the same.
Choosing Your Cuts
This was probably the part of the process we were most unsure about.
Like most people, we knew the obvious cuts, but once the order form started asking whether we wanted one cut prepared this way or another, we quickly realised we were out of our depth. If you don't already know your way around a beef carcass, it can feel like you're making decisions without really understanding what will end up in your freezer.
Thankfully, Greener Grasses has teamed up with Out the Farm Gate, whose interactive cut guide takes all the guesswork out of the process. It shows you where each cut comes from, what it's best suited for and how different preparation options will change your order. If you're buying a quarter beast for the first time, I'd genuinely recommend spending five minutes with this guide before completing your cut sheet.
Read the Out the Farm Gate interactive cut guide HERE.
Our biggest piece of advice is to think about the meals you already cook rather than chasing the "best" cuts. We love cast-iron sirloin steaks cooked with butter and garlic, so we asked for plenty of those. We also cook a lot with mince and schnitzel, so they were easy additions to our order. The beauty of buying this way is that your quarter beast can be tailored to suit your household, rather than someone else's.
So... How Much Meat Do You Actually Get?
This was the question we wanted answered more than any other.
When we collected our order, everything suddenly clicked. Instead of one overwhelming pile of meat, it arrived professionally butchered, vacuum packed, labelled and frozen, with a fantastic mix of steaks, mince, sausages, roasts and slower-cooking cuts ready to go straight into the freezer.
Seeing it all together was probably the biggest surprise. Yes, it was a lot of meat, but it felt organised rather than overwhelming. Hopefully the photos throughout this article give you a much better sense of the scale than numbers ever could.
The next question, of course, was whether all of it would actually fit in the freezer.
Will It Fit in Your Freezer?
The good news is yes - as long as you plan ahead.
We made sure we had dedicated freezer space before collection day and would strongly recommend doing the same. Once everything was home, we grouped similar cuts together, which has made meal planning much easier now that we're working our way through the order.
My only other tip is to take a quick photo once it's packed away. It's a surprisingly handy reminder of what you've got sitting in the freezer a few months down the track.
Then came the part we'd been quietly dreading...
Collection Day
Collection day was surprisingly uneventful - in the best possible way.
Everything had already been professionally butchered, vacuum packed, labelled and frozen, so all we had to do was load it into the car and head home. The only advice I'd give is to make sure you've cleared enough freezer space beforehand. After bringing home around 50 kilograms of beef, the last thing you'll want to do is reorganise your freezer while it starts thawing.
Cooking Our Way Through It
One of the nicest surprises has been how naturally the beef has become part of everyday family life.
Some nights it's been burgers or bolognese using the mince. Other nights we've cooked beautiful sirloin steaks in a cast-iron pan with butter, garlic and herbs. We've also started experimenting with cuts we probably wouldn't have picked up at the supermarket, simply because they were already sitting in the freezer waiting to be cooked.
One thing has already become clear: not only has the quality been excellent, we've found ourselves making better use of a wider variety of cuts instead of buying the same few things every week.
So... Was It Worth It?
For us, yes.
The quality of the beef has been consistently excellent. Our freezer is stocked with months' worth of meals, we've enjoyed trying cuts we probably wouldn't have bought otherwise, and there's something genuinely satisfying about knowing where our food came from and who raised it.
Would we do it again?
Absolutely.
That said, it's probably not the right fit for everyone.
If you have very limited freezer space, rarely cook at home or prefer buying dinner one meal at a time, this might not suit your lifestyle. But if you already eat beef regularly, have freezer space and like the idea of buying directly from the people producing your food, we'd absolutely recommend giving it a go.
Greener Grasses made the whole process approachable from start to finish, and we'd happily order from them again.
A Little Bonus for Ethically Kate Readers
If you'd like to try Greener Grasses yourself, they've kindly put together a small thank you for the Ethically Kate community.
Simply enter ETHICALLYKATE in the Special Requests box when placing your order and they'll include a complimentary gift pack featuring a selection of their handcrafted tallow products.
It's not a discount code; it won't change the price of your order. It's simply a thoughtful extra from the team as a thank you for supporting their farm.
Shop Greener Grasses HERE.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much freezer space do I need?
More than a standard fridge freezer, but less than we expected. We'd recommend having a dedicated chest or upright freezer ready before collection day. Once everything is organised, it's surprisingly manageable.
Can I choose which cuts I receive?
Yes. One of the best parts of the process is tailoring your order to suit how your household cooks. If you love steaks, you can lean that way. If you use lots of mince, slow-cooking cuts or schnitzel, you can prioritise those instead.
What if I don't know much about beef cuts?
Neither did we.
Greener Grasses provides plenty of guidance, and their partnership with Out the Farm Gate includes an excellent interactive cut guide that explains each option with photos and descriptions. We found it incredibly helpful.
Is buying a quarter beast good value?
That depends on what you normally buy.
You're paying for high-quality, regeneratively farmed beef that's professionally butchered, vacuum packed and frozen, while also buying directly from the farmer. For us, the combination of quality, convenience and knowing exactly where our food came from made it feel like excellent value.
Is the meat already frozen?
Yes. Our order arrived professionally butchered, vacuum packed, labelled and frozen, so it was ready to go straight into the freezer when we got home.
Would you buy this way again?
Without hesitation.
The whole process was much easier than we expected, the quality has been fantastic, and we genuinely enjoyed building a relationship with the people producing our food. We'd happily do it again.
Where can I order?
You can learn more about Greener Grasses, explore their current options and place an order through their website HERE.
This is a paid partnership with Greener Grasses, but as always, every opinion is my own after using the products myself.