What is "side"?

The side, refers to one half of the carcass of an animal, typically beef or pork, that has been split down the backbone. This division creates two sides: the left side and the right side. Each side contains various primal cuts of meat, including the ribs, loin, belly, chuck (for beef), or ribs, loin, belly, and leg (for pork). These primal cuts can then be further processed into retail cuts like steaks, roasts, chops, and ribs. The term "side" is often used in the meat industry when referring to wholesale or bulk quantities of meat, as well as in the context of butchering and processing animals for consumption.