Upscale ?

[Kelly Pfitzer]

Where to begin? Started raising Tamuk's about a year ago and still learning every day. To date, i have 6 breeders (4 bucks, 2 does) and currently 4 active kindles for a total of 31 rabbits (hot).

I've been butchering them myself for my own consumption and love the hobby. Only makes sense to have that many breeders if i have a home for some of the meat. A local butcher said they would discuss selling for me, but it needs to be FDA certified/inspected. Thats the hard part i'm trying to research...does anyone have any experience or suggestions to aid me on this journey?

 

[tambayo]

For commercial production you'd need way more animals to have the numbers a shop could be interested in, they´d want a reliable supply for customers. What about selling from home? What are the laws for farmsales in your area?
And actually you are probably better of eating most and selling some breedingstock since those prices tend to be higher.

 

[Alaska Satin]

Where to begin? Started raising Tamuk's about a year ago and still learning every day. To date, i have 6 breeders (4 bucks, 2 does) and currently 4 active kindles for a total of 31 rabbits (hot).

I've been butchering them myself for my own consumption and love the hobby. Only makes sense to have that many breeders if i have a home for some of the meat. A local butcher said they would discuss selling for me, but it needs to be FDA certified/inspected. Thats the hard part i'm trying to research...does anyone have any experience or suggestions to aid me on this journey?

Several of my friends have customers that buy raw food for their dogs and cats. It's a pretty good deal because up here there's no FDA or other bureaucratic red tape around it (you should still check your local and state laws), and sometimes the breeder doesn't even have to skin the carcass - just dispatch and bag!

That way they don't have to produce a ton of meat rabbits to try to keep a retailer happy (though they always have more pet owners waiting than they have meat rabbits).

 

[Phrick]

I believe it varies by state. I also think it’s USDA, not FDA, that’s in charge of inspecting, but that could also vary by state.

To my knowledge, rabbit meat falls under the “voluntary inspection” umbrella which means the decision for how it can be sold (eg limits on inspection, backyard sales, number of animals you can sell) are determined on a state by state basis. So here in Arizona, I’d have to hire a full time inspector at my own personal expense to inspect my butchering facility and animals - that’s 90k or more annually and is why there is no one here that sells their backyard animals butchered. There does seem to be a possible loophole in that AZ Fish & Game offers a processing license that would allow a private party to process game for someone else (eg someone that lives in an HOA goes hunting but isn’t allowed to process in their HOA, they could bring it to someone with that license). I’m unclear still, even after trying to find solid answers, as to if that’s really how it would work.

I recently found out that in Texas, though, butchered backyard rabbit sales are totally allowed and the limit of animals is sky high, I want to say it was like 10,000 animals you could sell before you have to start fooling with regulation.

And my friend and fellow rabbit raiser in Colorado told me that there, rabbit sales technically fall under the backyard poultry sales rules. So I don’t think there’s really an answer for you without knowing what state you’re in at the very least.