NATURAL VS ORGANIC

Organic beef does not necessarily mean meat that is naturally raised. Organic certification refers only to what an animal has or has not consumed. Period. Organic certification alone does not ensure that animals are raised in a healthy, sustainable and natural way, nor does it mean that animal welfare is necessarily a high priority. Many large food conglomerates have organic production divisions where the animals are raised in confinement and fed unnatural high-grain diets, although the feed is organically produced. Just because a package is labeled as organic beef does not ensure that you are necessarily buying the healthiest food for you and your family.So what do we mean when we say we are raising and producing natural beef? All natural to us means we do not administer growth hormones and antibiotics to our cows. In fact, since they lead a natural lifestyle that doesn’t involve life on a feed lot or on a confinement production farm they don’t need the antibiotics to keep them alive and healthy. Yes, when cattle are raised on feedlots or in confinement facilities and being fed unnatural, grain intensive diets, the administration of antibiotics is standard because the rate of disease is so high. Their feed often contain animal by-products as well. Cattle are vegetarians – they are NOT designed to digest this. Do you really want to be feeding this to yourself, your family and your friends?

Long stemmed forage is the natural diet for cattle. There are two places a cow can get this forage, pasture or hay. Our cattle are raised on pasture and are free to roam around with their herd. The cows are rotated between pastures periodically to ensure that they always have fresh grass and that the pastures are not over-grazed.

Natural beef benefits are surprising to most consumers. People don’t realize how different the nutritional value of the exact same product can be depending on how it was actually produced. Would you like to get the following health benefits without actually changing what you eat, but simply eating food that was raised differently? Following are a few benefits to eating beef that is primarily grass-fed (naturally raised) vs. feedlot beef that is fed a diet primarily of grain:
  • The meat is naturally leaner, and may have up to 50% less fat than feedlot beef. Switching from feedlot to grassfed beef could save the average person up to 17,000 calories per year
  • Meat from pastured cattle is up to four times higher in Vitamin E than meat from feedlot cattle
  • Beef raised primarily on pasture will have three to five times more CLA (Conjugated Linoleic Acid) than beef fed primarily grain (as they are on a feedlot)
  • Significantly reduce your risk of E. coli: Beef raised on a diet of all or primarily grain have dramatically higher risks of E. coli contamination
  • Increase your Omega-3 fatty acid intake: Pastured beef has two to four times more Omega-3 than feedlot/grocery store beef
  • Eat beef with a more balanced ratio of Omega-3 fats to Omega-6 fats

Why are their so many benefits to natural beef?

Cattle are ruminants and are designed to eat a vegetarian diet based around high fiber, low protein forage. Grain is the opposite of their ideal diet as it is high in protein and low in fiber compared to grass. Grain based diets cause the digestive tract to become abnormally acidic. This acidic environment allows E. coli to multiply.

The natural diet of cattle is green grass that is naturally high in Omega-3 fats because it is formed in their green leaves, as well as Vitamin E. When cattle are placed on a high grain diet they lose their source of Omega-3’s and thus their ability to store Omega-3’s. They also lose their source of Vitamin E. Omega-3 fat or “fatty acid” is one of the “good fats” that is essential for normal growth and development and plays a role in the prevention of heart disease, cancer, and arthritis, to name a few. An important fact is that Omega-3 fats MUST come from your diet because your body cannot make them.

Meat from grassfed ruminants is also one of the best known sources of Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA), and may contain up to five times the amount of CLA as meat from primarily grain-fed cattle. CLA is proving to be one of the best defenses in preventing cancer. Research is showing that CLA is effective as an anticarcinogenic at a much lower dose than many other naturally occurring anticarcinogens.

How can you afford not to change your meat source?

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