Grass Fed Question???

[ttamd]

im just a little confused on why people would feed their cows on a grass-fed diet when they can grow their animals to butcher weight a lot faster on grain. now, im thinking that grain is more expensive than grass, but some people are feeding their cattle/sheep grass-fed so do you think that all of those people have to be selling their meat for more?

-Or maybe in some places grain is so expensive and land/hay is so cheap that you actually save money (and make bigger profits) by feeding your cattle/sheep a grass-fed diet?

basically the main question is: is it ever cheaper to grow cattle/sheep/goats on a grass fed diet? OR do basically all grass-fed farms end up having to sell their meat for a higher price than grain fed farms (in order to make their profit)?

[KnowOneSpecial]

I don't know about commercial, but I raise our beef on grass.

For one thing there's the cost. I pay about $50 for a bag of milk replacer and that's about it as far as feed goes. If it's a cold winter I'll give them a bit of corn or alfalfa squares to warm them up a bit from the inside out, but not too much. They get a scoop of corn for the last month of their life, too, just to put some fat on them. Yes it takes longer, but in my opinion, it's worth it. The butcher says my beef has good marbeling and not a lot of fat. It takes him less time to do the cutting as he's not having to scrape away a ton of fat. Supposedly the beef is better for you, too. Not as much cholesterol (?).

Now that word is out that I grass feed our beef I could sell 10 cows a year. too bad I have just 2 acres of pasture!

[Dreamfarm]

Grassfed beef is not only cheaper to raise ( assuming one has pasture) it is way better for you healthwise. Has more Omega 3 the good cholesterol. It commands a higher price because of this. And lets not even get started on GMO corn.

[Cliff]

Grass fed is healthy for your heart, grain fed is damaging to your heart. Grass fed beef has healthy omega6 to omega3 fatty acid ratios. Also cla.

Grass fed is always cheaper to raise. And easier.

BTW knowonespecial, you are not raising "grass fed" beef in the way that most people will understand it if you tell them it's grass fed. Technically, yes any cow that eats grass is grass fed. But what people are thinking when you tell them that your meat is grass fed is that it has never had grain. It only takes a relatively small amount of grain to negate the health benefits of grass fed beef.

[chester5731]

I have never had grass fed, I like my grain fed too much. I have one lady that said she doesn't care how much I charge, she wants a whole one every year. From what I understand with grass fed you can't cook it much past rare or it gets tough and dry. That is what one fella told me that wanted me to raise him a grass fed animal. I said no thanks.

[Cliff]

Originally Posted by chester5731

I have never had grass fed, I like my grain fed too much. I have one lady that said she doesn't care how much I charge, she wants a whole one every year. From what I understand with grass fed you can't cook it much past rare or it gets tough and dry. That is what one fella told me that wanted me to raise him a grass fed animal. I said no thanks.

You are just used to grain fed. It's habit. When you get used to grass fed, grain fattened beef is greasy and has much less actual flavor. What people who aren't used to grass fed think of as flavor is really just the fat and the greasy texture.

I'm a CCU nurse - people are fat and sick and dropping like flies from heart disease. I decided a long time ago I was going to try my best not to be one of them.

Cows were made to eat grass. We were made to eat animals who feed naturally. Everything in nature is interconnected and the further we stray from what our bodies evolved to use as fuel the more health consequences there are.

[genebo]

All the supermarket beef is raised by the same formula that produces "commodity beef". This beef has a uniform taste that so many people have grown up on and like. Those who grew up on grass fed beef like it's taste the best.

There are different breeds of cattle, each better suited to being raised on corn or grass. Angus and it's derivitives have been selected for their ability to fatten quickly on a diet of corn, while Dexters are far more efficient at converting grass to beef.

Putting a modern Angus on pure grass is likely to produce lean, tough beef. Putting a Dexter on pure grain is likely to produce an overly fat animal and waste a lot of money.

In this country, there isn't a ready market for grass fed beef. Most people who raise grass fed do it for their own consumption or for sale to specialty markets or client lists.

Good grass fed beef from a good breed is a wonder to behold and taste. It takes longer to develop the marbling and flavor, but is well worth the wait. You can feed an Angus steamed corn and harvest it in 17 months, covered with fat. A grass fed Dexter will take 24-27 months to marble up and develop full flavor. It will have a light outside fat cover.

Once I had company for dinner and I served grass fed Dexter steaks. The man was insistant that his steak was the best he had ever eaten. He wanted to know where he could buy some. I told him it is scarce. The only two steers I knew of for sale were in my pasture. He bought them both. He put hi9s money where his mouth is, to get what he liked.

I held him to only one steer, because I had a family that wanted the other one. He turned his freezer of beef over to the chef at a local restaurant. He'd call ahead for reservations and take friends out to eat grass fed Dexter beef. The lesser cuts went into stews and specialty recipes until evry last bit was gone. Then he wanted more.

But like I said, Dexter beef is scarce. I had raised two more steers, but one went into my freezer and I sold the other to a family that drove all day to get him.

Lots of people who keep Dexters for their milk have never eaten grass fed Dexter beef, so the chances of you getting some lie solely in you finding someone who has a business of selling it, like Heritage Beef and get on their waiting list.

Or, you could buy and raise your own grass fed Dexter beef. Just think, in a little under 3 years you could be eating some of the finest beef ever, as judged many times.

There are other breeds which also do well as grass fed cattle. Highlands, Galloways and Devons are a few. Highlands are a little slowere to develop than Dexters, but are judged to make beef that is almost equal. Galloways are even slower to develop, but in the ALBC's blind taste test, actually beat the Dexter entry!

When your doctor tells you to quit eating red meat and eat more Atlantic cold water fish, he's really telling you to quit eating grain fed commodity beef. That's because of it's high Omega 6 content. Grass fed beef has about the same ratio of 6 to 3 Omega fatty acids as the fish your doctor recommends.

The conclusion? Commodity beef can kill you. Grass fed beef is health food.

[nosqrls]

Also look at the label on the meat red dye added, water added. You pay for that grain finished has a lighter color so they dye it. Some dyes are bad for your health. Water added really don't get me started on that. I raise my own dark red beef grass fed and no @#$%&* water added. I seen grain finished beef with a 2 inch layer of fat that goes in the trash. Our butcher has asked if he can add fat from another animal or burger will be too lean. Hell no. I raise Highlands and it is better than angus my 2 cents.

[PaulNKS]

Originally Posted by chester5731

From what I understand with grass fed you can't cook it much past rare or it gets tough and dry. That is what one fella told me that wanted me to raise him a grass fed animal. I said no thanks.

He doesn't understand how to cook any type of meat if that's what he told you.

You can take commodity beef and put it on a grill and get good tasting steaks everytime.... almost.

However, the leaner any type of meat is, the slower it has to be cooked which means on a lower temperature.

If you take any game such as deer and cook it like commodity beef, it will be tough, dry, and hard to eat. But, if you cook it very slowly over a low temp, it will be tender. The same applies for grass-fed beef. If you cook it slowly and on a low temp, it will stay moist and tender.... and full of flavor.

Our beef is all commercial and sold at the sale barns. BUT... it is also all grass fed. When we went to grass-fed years and years ago, our profits went up exponentially... literally. The health of the herd also improved and today, we have very few health concerns and very little need for antibiotics and other meds.The overall health of a herd is directly related to the management of that herd.

[Gabriel]

Here's a list of the health benefits to grass fed beef.

Please, if you feed your cattle grain, even just a little(!) tell your customers that you do so. If/when they find out, it reflects poorly on all of us.

[ttamd]

thanks! the only thing is tho, that unlike organic, there's no certification process that a grass-fed farm can do (that i know of); so how do you know if the grass-fed beef that your buying is actually 100% grass-fed?

[chester5731]

Originally Posted by ttamd

thanks! the only thing is tho, that unlike organic, there's no certification process that a grass-fed farm can do (that i know of); so how do you know if the grass-fed beef that your buying is actually 100% grass-fed?

Or if it is 100% grass fed, what chemicals are put on the grass? Fertilizer, weed killer, bug killer?

[Cliff]

Originally Posted by ttamd

thanks! the only thing is tho, that unlike organic, there's no certification process that a grass-fed farm can do (that i know of); so how do you know if the grass-fed beef that your buying is actually 100% grass-fed?

You just need to get to know the farmer. Any farmer who knows what he's doing and why in growing grass fed beef isn't likely to sneak grain to them Plus it just isn't cost effective to do so.

[FarmerDavid]

Originally Posted by Cliff

Cows were made to eat grass.

ummm corn is a grass

[Awnry Abe]

Originally Posted by ttamd

basically the main question is: is it ever cheaper to grow cattle/sheep/goats on a grass fed diet? OR do basically all grass-fed farms end up having to sell their meat for a higher price than grain fed farms (in order to make their profit)?

I was really hoping some of you experienced guys would address the latter part of this question before a nube like me jumped in and really spewed ignorance all over the place.

There are several business models for beef production, and some of them overlap. I think a more rudimentary primer discussion of the beef industry, large and small, is in order. Unfortunately, I am not the one to edify, other than to point out that one who raises live cattle generally does not pull into the loading dock of Krogers with sides of beef ready to be sliced into steaks and shrink wrapped. Their is a fairly decent layer of middle men in that supply chain. To me, the phrase "sell meat" implies either selling directly to the consumer via local markets on a small scale or via grocery store/mega mart by big ag.

I am going to go the cow/calf route to supply feeder steers to the big ag supply chain and cull cows to the pink slime/fast food chain. I have lots of pasture, which is cheap feed. It is bought and paid for and I only need to keep from running it into the ground. (easier said than done for a nube). A cow can only have so many calves per year, so it doesn't really matter to me if the calf grows faster or slower than a grain fed calf. I think if I took my calves to the sale barn and screamed "BUT THESE ARE GRASS FED!!" they would tell me to sit down and shut up. You experienced guys/gals please tell me if I have this wrong.

I may also sell a head or two directly to the consumer. In such a case, I do want the steer to grow quickly, but the market here is gaining in desire for grass fed/finished. I personally do not enjoy dealing with end customers, nor direct marketing, so I don't intend to let the profit motive drive me here. Kind of a mute point for me.

My personal bias is to consume grass fed and finished, which actually tastes like something (pasture grass), vs. grain fed which to me is just a carrier for seasoning. I also prefer to give a humane treatment of my animals, at least while they under my stewardship, which means grass fed for my cows. Not that grain fed is inhumane, but grass was their intended diet. All that said, I hold no ill feelings towards anyone that is working to make a buck in any place in the beef space--regardless of their grass/grain/humane angle. As long as the consumer doesn't give a rats a**, all cogs in this wheel are badly needed.

[Awnry Abe]

Originally Posted by FarmerDavid

ummm corn is a grass

Sigh...

[FarmerDavid]

Originally Posted by CrownRanch

Sigh...

Is it not?

[genebo]

That is a fact that the corn plant is a grass. As a grass, it has the desirable ratio of Omega 6 to Omega 3 fatty acids. The seed, as it forms, draws the plant's nutrient value and Omega 6's into it. By the time the seed is fully mature, it is very high in Omega 6's and low in Omega 3's.

Corn plants fed to cattle before the seed forms would qualify as grass for grass fed beef.

The same thing holds true for other grasses grown for their seeds: wheat, oats, barley, etc.

[Awnry Abe]

Yes, corn is a grass. I am, of course, way out of my league here. Thank you for the 'splaination of fatty acids and grass. Who knows, maybe given the choice of a corn field at harvest and pasture, the cows would go bonkers for the corn field.

[sammyd]

there are guidelines put forth by the USDA to try to nail down what grass fed encompasses.
Basically any grain has to be fed or grazed in its vegetative state so turning them loose on a field of ripe cob corn would be a no no...