What is Grass-Fed?
They're Home on the Range
Also called grass-finished, grass-fed meat is from animals that spend
their entire life eating grass after being weaned. Grass-fed beef is a product
of animals that naturally eat grass that is "farmed" by ranchers. This
ranching technique differs than the mainstream method of sending cattle to
feedlots for fattening on grains until they make "market weight."
Healthy Eating Choice
Grass-fed meat has a different nutritional makeup and is free from antibiotics
and hormones. According to Jo Robinson, New York Times bestselling author
of "Pasture Perfect," who also did a presentation at the Mealani
Research Station in 1995, products from grass-fed animals are better for
you because they are produced in the way "nature intended." Similar
to wild game, pastured animals contain the amounts and kinds of nutrients
your body "expects" to digest.
Thumbs Up on Nutrition
Animal science research shows grass-fed beef is easier to assimilate and lower
in calories and total fat; in fact, it can have the same amount of fat as
skinless chicken breast, wild deer or elk. Grass-fed beef has two-to-six
times more beneficial, heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids than grain-fed beef. In
addition, a Colorado State University study found meat from pastured animals "has
four times the amount of Vitamin E and is one of the richest known sources
of conjugated linoleic acid." CLA has suppressed cancer in the laboratory
and is known for its body weight management properties.
Antibiotic and Hormone-Free
Robinson's website, Eatwild.com, reports animals raised and finished on pasture "are
not given growth hormones or antibiotics because they are allowed to grow at
a natural pace and don't have the diseases and complications that come from
being fed grain in crowded and stressful feedlots."
Food Safety
Bacteria found in grass-fed beef has a neutral pH and is less likely to survive
the natural acidity of the human digestive tract-our first line of defense
against infectious diseases. On the other hand, the digestive tracts of grain-fed
animals can be abnormally acidic, and over time, pathogenic bacteria such
as E. coli adapt to the acidic environment and have a better chance of surviving
human digestion. In addition, grass-fed animals are never fed commercial
feed, which could contain meat or bone meal from animals infected with Bovine
Spongiform Encephalopathy (Mad Cow Disease).