The Lambulator: A Cut-Yield Calculator for the Lamb Direct Marketer

By Dave Scott, NCAT Agriculture Specialist

Why You Need the Lambulator

You have gone to great effort to raise a nice set of finished lambs and have them processed. Now what? It’s great if you can sell them all as wholes or halves. But maybe you can’t. How do you go about pricing individual cuts for profit? What is the smallest lamb that you should have in your direct-market program? How do you price high-demand cuts to cover the lower pricing of lesser-demand cuts? In the maze of cuts and cut prices, what is your profit per lamb?

The ATTRA Lambulator is the perfect tool to help you answer these questions. A cut-yield pricing calculator is an essential part of a direct marketing lamb business. The Lambulator has been designed with the small direct marketer in mind. It is easy to understand and use, even if you have no experience with Microsoft Excel. Just plug in your cut weights and prices and let it do the calculating for you. In an instant, it will calculate carcass yield percentages, individual and average net profit per lamb, and your overall gross and net profit. It will even allow you to try different pricing scenarios should your production or marketing costs increase. Get started with the Lambulator today!

For tips on using the calculator, refer to our instructional video, found here.

Note: Those without Excel can use the open source Libre Calc to utilize the spreadsheet.

Download a copy using the download button at right.