Crowd Cow review: Pasture-raised meat and responsibly-caught seafood in a variety of basic and premium cuts

Crowd Cow offers pasture-raised meat and responsibly-caught seafood in a variety of basic and premium cuts. Here's how it works.

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When online meat supplier Crowd Cow first launched, you had the opportunity to literally buy shares of a cow directly from a local farm. Once enough people pooled in to buy an entire cow, your cut was shipped directly to you.

Even though Crowd Cow's business model has evolved, its basic spirit lives on. Crowd Cow wants you to know exactly where your meat comes from and how the animal was treated before you cook it. Read on to learn what it's like to order from Crowd Cow, from organic chicken wings to Japanese wagyu beef. 

How Crowd Cow works 

Crowd Cow sells a variety of responsibly raised meat and seafood, from pasture-raised and free-range chicken to wild-caught seafood. You can also find premium selections like American and Japanese wagyu and New Zealand, 100% grass-fed lamb.  

Each product page tells you the precise farm and location where the meat came from and additional background information about the farm and its practices. Crowd Cow only works with independent farms and never with industrial farms or meat brokers. According to the brand, the meat from these farms is typically "only available at specialty markets, farmer's markets, and high-end restaurants." Crowd Cow is an accessible way you can try high-quality meat. 

You can also sign up for a recurring subscription box to stock up your fridge with these meats. Prices start at $99, and each subscription box saves you 5% on the total. You can pause, change the frequency, or cancel any at any time, and shipping is free. 

What it's like to order from Crowd Cow

I tested the Farmers Market subscription box ($144.43 for non-members, $123.49 for members) so I could try a variety of the meats it offers. 

My order arrived in a box insulated with Green Cell Foam insulation, which is biodegradable and water-soluble, and packed with dry ice. I usually don't arrive home until late on most days, so I'm always concerned about any frozen food package deliveries, but all the meat was still frozen many hours after it was delivered.

The Farmers Market box included top sirloin steaks, ground beef, bacon, Italian sausage, chuck roast, and butterflied chicken. Each individually wrapped cut had a label with the name of the farm it traveled from. 

I've cooked the majority of this spread, and each cut was delicious and flavorful. What I really love about these boxes is the variety. I typically get bored cooking and eating the same thing every week, and this box was the perfect opportunity to try many different types of meat — high-quality and responsibly raised meat, no less. 

Where Crowd Cow fits into the food world at large 

At a time when the environmental impact of eating meat continues to be a key concern in conversations about this planet's future, it might be surprising that services like Crowd Cow not only remain afloat but are doing better than ever before. 

As it turns out, US beef production isn't slowing down, which makes Crowd Cow the optimal service that lets you have your meat and eat it too. If you're going to eat meat, Crowd Cow is one way to ensure it's not "mystery meat." It sells a more conscious and responsible way of eating an increasingly contentious protein, so that, at the very least, you are not blindly participating in the problem.

The bottom line

Crowd Cow gives you reliable, convenient access to the type of meat you want to be eating — raised with ethical and environmentally friendly standards by farmers and ranchers who care. If you like cooking and exploring different types of meat, but want to approach it with a careful conscience, then you should try Crowd Cow.