It’s all in the taste…

Chefs from Alice Watters at Chez Panisse to Manhattan’s Chef’s Collaborative are choosing grass-fed beef for its savory, more ‘beefy’ flavor. When properly prepared it is also more tender and juicy. But there are plenty of other reasons to go to the trouble of seeking out a food not normally found in grocery stores.

Animal Welfare

Beef from the average grocery store comes from feed-lot cattle. These cattle are packed close together in pens where they eat soy and corn - neither of which are natural foods – and stand in their feces.

They are also not healthy. The feed they eat gives them sub-acute acidosis (acid tummy) and they are plagued with diarrhea, pant, salivate excessively, kick at their bellies, and eat dirt. Their diet is low in vitamin A, which causes blindness and convulsions. In contrast, grass-fed cattle are rarely sick because they experience so little stress. They live in a natural environment where they can move about at will.

Environment

Grazing is truly wonderful for the planet. Farming cannot be sustainable if the topsoil is constantly being eroded. Currently, the United States is losing three billion tons of nutrient-rich topsoil each year. Growing corn and soy causes six times more soil erosion than pasture. And there are other benefits:

• Grazing requires much less fossil fuel than a feedlot diet of dried corn and soy
• On pasture, grazing animals do their own fertilizing and harvesting.
• Grazed pasture removes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere more effectively than any land use.
• On well-managed pasture-based farms, the animals spread their manure evenly over the soil where it becomes a sustainable source of organic fertilizer.
• Cattle that graze produce as much as 20 percent less methane.
• Pasture reduces topsoil erosion by 93 percent

Grazed pasture equals healthy soil. Carefully managed grazed land has:

• 53% greater soil stability
• 131% more earthworms
• Substantially more organic matter
• Less nitrate pollution of groundwater
• Improved stream quality
• Better habitat for grassland birds and other wildlife

Health

Grass-fed cattle are missing some of the things that come for free with feed-lot beef including:

• No Growth hormones
• Grass-fed cattle rarely need antibiotics
• Animals that are fed greens alone from birth until market have no exposure to animal by-products that cause mad-cow disease
• Feed-lot cattle may be injected with pesticides
• A vastly reduced risk of e-coli contamination

But the real benefit is in what Grass-fed beef does bring to the table:

• More antioxidants, vitamins E, A, D, B12, and beta-carotene than feedlot meat
• Higher levels of CLA. CLA may be one of our most potent defenses against cancer.
• Two to four times more omega-3 fatty acids than meat from grain-fed animals.
• Meat from grass-fed animals has about half the fat as meat from grain-fed animals and significantly fewer calories.

Ok, I’m sold, so how do I get this stuff?

Grass-fed beef is available at Whole Foods Markets, but at premium prices. The best and most economical choice is to buy direct from the farmer. When you purchase in this way, you vote for quality with your feet, and the farmer gets a fair shake. We work with Farmer Larry Lampman of Anacromdale, NY. He owns Fox Hill Farm where he raises Murray Greys,  Red Devons,  Herefords, Angus, and heritage British Whites.

Grass-fed beef is generally sold by portion of cow: one quarter, one half, and the best price being given for a whole. But most people can neither consume nor store an entire cow, and even a quarter is often too much! The solution is buying a cow with others.

If you live in Southern Connecticut, Vital Living will collect names of those interested in buying a whole cow. Once we have 4 to 8 people who are ready to purchase, we organize the type of cut, pick up, and sort the order. A whole cow goes for $3 per pound hanging weight and the average animal weighs about 650 lbs. The meat and cost is divided up between the purchasers and includes a mix of steaks, roasts, stew meat and hamburger, and Vital Living charges $20 per person.

Call or e-mail to join the cow-share program.

203-209-7680
selina.rifkin@yahoo.com

To find other pastured livestock products, or if you live outside southern CT, check out Eat Wild.