When telling people that I sell grass fed meat a common response is; ‘isn’t all UK beef grass fed? They tend to get this look…..
In the UK we have a wide diversity of livestock farms that have a wide range of rearing systems and we do indeed have a lot of grass.
It is true that in the UK, we may not see the huge concentrated animal feeding operations of the USA. However, the vast majority of farms do use grains in one form or another to ‘finish’ their cattle, lambs and mutton ewes.
Why does that matter?
We cover why eating grass fed meat makes so much sense elsewhere in great detail but in short the main reasons are;
It’s good for the environment. Grass-fed cattle grazed in regenerative systems promote the sequestration of carbon from the atmosphere into the soil. Buy not using grains farmers avoid using cereals and soya sourced from unsustainable farming systems.
It’s good for the animals. Cattle are designed to eat pasture and graze in open fields. Pasture/grass-fed livestock tend to have higher welfare and spend their time doing what cows are supposed to do. Their mixed natural diet promotes robust health so grass-fed animals suffer from less disease and require fewer health interventions including the need for antibiotics.
It’s better for your health. Grass fed meat has a healthy fat profile, is a powerhouse of nutrients and even contains concentrations of beneficial plant nutrients!
There are no specific labelling laws governing the term grass-fed so the term is widely used to cover a broad spectrum of animal rearing systems. ‘Grass-fed could be used to cover animals who have had a very short time on pasture and are then cereal fed until slaughter, right through to those who are fortunate enough to graze naturally for the whole of their lives.
I am not suggesting that farmers who use grains are ‘bad’, or even that the taste or texture of the meat they are producing is poor, but, it certainly does not guarantee that the nutrient density is what we expect from ‘grass-fed’ meat.
It seems that the critical period for the animals to be grass-fed is in the 80-90 days prior to slaughter which would fall within most UK livestock’s ‘finishing’ period – when farmers are fattening the animals in order to get a good confirmation of carcass and a favourable price. The majority of UK farms will feed cereals for this period, and many will bring the animals indoors in order to do this efficiently.
An Australian study into the ‘Effect of feeding systems on omega-3 fatty acids, conjugated linoleic acid and trans fatty acids in Australian beef cuts: potential impact on human health’ (Ponnampalam, E.N., 2006), showed that all of the previously gained omega-3 and conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) of grass-fed beef was destroyed in just 80 days of grain feeding to the degree that it no longer qualified as being a meaningful dietary source by the New Zealand and Australian Food Standards Agency.
There are very few farmers in the UK finishing their animals exclusively on pasture which includes nutrient-dense pasture crops like red clover, lucerne and a variety of wildflowers along with grass.
The only recognised certification program for ‘grass-fed or ‘pasture-fed’ meat is operated by the Pasture-Fed Livestock Association and they are working hard to get more farmers on board to sell under their label ‘pasture for life’. The chances are if it is not certified your local farmer will, in fact, be finishing his ‘local grass-fed meat’ on grains!
It’s also worth noting that the term ‘grass-fed’ is really only relevant to ruminant animals that would naturally have a pasture-based diet. Omnivores such as fowl and pigs can eat some grass and love to scratch and root in the pasture, however, it is very unlikely these animals will be grass-finished at any commercial scale in the UK.
So really the term ‘grass-fed’ is pretty meaningless unless you dig a bit deeper. Unfortunately, the widespread use of the term ‘grass-fed’ also undermines the efforts of those trying to encourage more farmers to exclusively rear on grass. Rearing animals purely on pasture is an incredibly sustainable way to produce meat but it takes a deep understanding of organic farming, eco-systems and holistic animal health management.
If you want to be sure of the potential nutrient quality of the meat you are buying then you need to buy ‘pasture for life’ certified meat, or ask the following questions of your supplier:
Are the animals grazed outside on pasture?
Do the animals receive ANY grains?
What feed is used to ‘finish’ the livestock?
The answer to these questions should give you some insight into where, on the wide scale of nutrient quality, your ‘grass-fed meat’ may fall.
I am delighted to say that Primal Meats only sells beef and lamb that is Pasture for life certified. We work with a small and trusted group of farmers who rear their animals to the very highest standards of welfare and have farming systems that positively impact the planet.
We have a superb range of pasture for life certified beef cuts available all year round – something that is extremely hard to achieve – and at times also offer ‘cow shares’ where you can buy a share in a specific animal reared on a very special farm.
Check out our beef selection HERE.
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