Heaven Scent Farm, operated by a homeschool family in Gainesville, Virginia is a small-scale working farm. Our all-natural Black Angus beef and farm-fresh lamb is top quality and our pricing is excellent considering the variety of custom cuts we offer -- all at the same low per-pound price. While you may find others who beat our price, they cannot beat our meat for great taste, goodness and excellent quality.
The quality we strive for is centered around a commitment to sustainable agriculture. Due to the small scale of our farm, we are not certified organic. However, we care greatly for the environment with which God has blessed us. We have worked closely with the Prince William County Soil and Water Conservation District to employ extensive soil and water conservation practices which prevent both erosion and water pollution, while actually yielding yearly net increases in loamy soil. Some of these practices include fencing to manage riparian areas, rotational grazing, and automatic watering systems for our livestock to help keep our local streams and waterways clean. Heaven Scent Farm has also received Prince William County’s “Clean Water Farm Award.”
Furthermore, we utilize humane livestock care and handling practices - this guarantees our animals are well contented and fit, both physically and mentally. A happy animal is a healthy animal and there is no doubt the beef we provide greatly surpasses anything produced in the commercial market using conventional ‘hormone-ridden’ and ‘chemically-laced’ farming practices. Our customers attest to this fact regularly. Our meat is all-natural, good for you, and tastes great too.
Additionally, after slaughter, our beef hangs in a regulated cold storage for a minimum of 21 days. This cures the meat and maximizes flavor. The reason for this is that aging allows for natural enzymes to break down hard connective tissue and for more water to evaporate naturally - concentrating the flavor. Most commercial meat processors (and many butchers) do not allow for dry curing, and as such there is greater water content in grocery store beef (noticeable at the time of cooking), and less flavor. Lamb requires less hanging time, but our farm fresh lamb also hangs prior to processing.
We sell our Black Angus Beef in whole, half, quarter, and even 1/8 portions. The average hanging weight of a side of beef is approx. 350 lbs., and correspondingly the average quarter portion hanging weight is approx. 175 lbs. The total cost of an order is based on the hanging weight before processing (i.e. after the head, hoofs, hide, and insides are removed, but before the butcher makes the individual cuts). If you purchase less than a 1/2 portion, the butcher will mix cuts from the fore and hind sections to give you a good variety of cuts. All cuts are vacuum packaged, ready for your freezer or the grill.
Our lamb is sold in whole and half portions. In the United States, lamb is considered a specialty meat, therefore the per lb. price is higher than beef. Lamb pricing is based on the hanging weight, (recorded at the time of slaughter by the butcher once the head, hide, hoofs, and organs are removed but before the butcher makes the individual cuts). The average lamb typically has a hanging weight between 50 and 90 lbs.
Note: Because the butcher is packaging for wholesale rather than retail, individual cuts are not labeled by weight. Additionally, there is some shrinkage when the butcher processes the meat to order, but the pricing is always based on the hanging weight as recorded by the butcher at the time of slaughter. This is standard practice for custom butcher services. The shrinkage is anywhere from 20% to 45% of the hanging weight, depending upon the cuts and trimming. Therefore, if you go home (as some people have done) and weigh your meat on your bathroom scale, it will be less than the quoted hanging weight for your purchased portion.
