By Hayley Dawson.

With this week’s podcast launching on Wednesday, I thought it would be a great time to write a blog to go with it. I was so excited to have Bianca from Our Cow on the podcast discussing their business as well as the benefits of grass-fed. It is a bit of a controversial topic grass-fed vs grain-fed vs organic. As well as the perception that many people think that all meat is bad for you or unhealthy. So, let’s break it down now for you from a health perspective

As we all know nutrition in food has been declining over the decades, this is coming from a number of reasons. Poor soil health, chemical use, as well as trying to grow bigger products, heavier crops, or running more livestock per acre. Over the years, as demand has grown farmers have started feeding their livestock grain-based products to increase the stock’s weight quickly to finish them so they can be sold quickly.

Let’s talk about grain-fed first

Did you know that 80% of all beef sold in the majority of Australian supermarkets comes from feedlots? Although this helps drought-proof the industry and ensures a constant supply of beef for domestic and international markets, we need to consider its effects on animal welfare and the environment. Then if we are looking at the nutrition quality too, due to more grain being a grain-based diet the meat is higher in fat and lower in nutrients.

Organic

Organic means the animal was not given hormones, antibiotics, or man-made pesticides in its feed. However, they may still be fed grains, corn, and soy. So, these animals if loaded on a lot of grains will have similar nutrition quality as the grain-fed beef. Yes, no chemicals or hormones but we are just unsure if that will outweigh was the animals have been fed.

Grass-fed

Grass-fed is beef only raised and fed on grass. More often than not grass-fed is also organic, but just hasn't obtained the organic certification. Grass-fed can use antibiotics and chemicals if required and you heard Bianca talk about this in the podcast. It is an animal welfare issue, if an animal is sick, they may need antibiotics or something similar, just like us as humans. It isn't fair to let them suffer to keep an organic certification. Yes, I’m a naturopath and much prefer natural solutions to treat certain conditions but I believe western and herbal medicine can work hand in hand together.

Health benefits of grass-fed.

Grass-fed beef is one of the most nutrient-dense proteins you can buy. It has an extensive micronutrient profile and contains a good amount of brain-boosting omega-3 fatty acids.

Contains more healthy fats.

Grass-fed beef provides up to 6 times more of the healthy fats, omega 3 fatty acids.
Grass-fed is significantly lower levels of saturated fat and is higher in nutrients and antioxidants.

Contains more nutrients

Numerous studies have proved pasture-fed and pasture-finished cattle have more nutrients and a greater range of nutrients compared to other products. This study found here highlights grass-fed cattle produce higher levels of Vitamin E and beta-carotene in the final meat product than cattle fed and finished on grain.

So, I hope that helps you better understand the difference between, grain-fed, organic, and grass-fed. You can guarantee you are getting quality grass-fed products when you order through Our Cow as they know all of their farmers personally and only select the best quality produce. But if you cannot get Our Cow in your area my final suggestion to you is to get to know your farmer 👩‍🌾 👨‍🌾 . Ask questions about the final product as well as their production system. All farmers that I’ve met are more than happy to impart their knowledge to us.

If you would like to learn more, please make sure you head to Spotify or apple podcast and listen to this week’s podcast with Bianca from Our Cow.