Dressing out is the process of butchering a carcass into edible meat cuts — the transformation of the slaughtered animal into the joints, steaks, and portions the trade sells. It begins with bleeding, skinning or scalding, and evisceration under hygienic conditions, then the carcass is split, chilled, and broken down along anatomical lines into primals and then retail cuts. Every step balances yield against quality: careful knife work recovers more saleable meat, proper chilling protects it, and hygienic handling keeps it safe. The term covers both the abattoir’s industrial scale and the smallholder’s single animal. Dressing-out percentage — the proportion of live weight that becomes carcass — is the industry’s key efficiency measure. It is the oldest food-processing operation there is, and still the foundation of the meat trade.