Wednesday, May 21, 2014

The Implications Of Grass-Fed Beef Farms

By Minnie Whitley


Before 1990, numerous farmers used to fatten their animals by feeding them on grain and soy in addition to different supplements. They provided the supplements to the animals in the feedlots. But recently, there has been a developing pattern among farmers in having the cattle on ranches at home. They are then provided with grass pasture. Farms that offer such native feeding to its animals is what is referred to as a grass-fed beef farms.

This beef farming depends on natural feeding. There is no hormone application and promotion of animal growth using additives. As a result, the animals grow at natures pace. They experience very little interference which leaves them healthy and without stress. They do not demand antibiotics and such drugs.

The farming results in more nutritious products, with healthy implications. Meat from grass fed and grain fed livestock are incomparable. A pasture fed beef possess quite less total fat and calorie. It also has less cholesterol and saturated fat. The level of vitamin C and E is quite higher in pastured meat than ingrained meat. The natural grown meat also has more beta carotene, omega 3 fatty acids and conjugated linoleic acid.

The omega 3 good fat substances found in pasture fed meat have been proved to be healthier. These essential fatty acids slow down the growth of a varied array of cancers. It keeps them from spreading. They can also speed up the recovery after cancer surgery.

The animal study suggests further that the people with cancer and having high levels of this acid in their tissues are likely to respond well to chemotherapy. This is opposed to people having low omega 3 levels.Omega 3 is contained and formed in green leaves (in chloroplasts). This explains why pasture-fed animals stand a high chance of having more omegas compared to grain fed animals.

The practice, however requires knowledge and skill as opposed to just sending the animals to a feedlot. In order for the pasture fed animals to be more succulent and tender, they need to feed on grass and legumes of high quality. This is particularly the case in the months before the slaughter. This natural and nutritious diet relies on a healthy soil, together with a careful pasture management to maintain the plants at an optimal growth stage. The quality of the pasture is the sole determiner of the quality of animal products. It is therefore important for the farmer to raise great grass.

In spite of the fact that the grain, animal products are fairly affordable and convenient, the profoundly mechanized operations employed have produced much concern. The practice abuses and stresses the animals. It also misuses such drugs as antibiotics and hormones and results in produce with low nutritional value.

There is often a fallacious argument that natural based farming is unprofitable and time consuming. Though it is a fact that this farming is slow, expensive and relatively unprofitable it remains the most balanced and healthy system. The decision on what to consume entirely rest with the consumer, but be enlightened that products resulting from natural farming are nutritious and healthy. Opting for them not only boosts the health of your family, but also depletes environmental degradation.




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