Grain Fed Rant

[jnntefend]

OK, I just need to blow off some steam here. I live in Texas, and around here, we have alot of steak houses and every one of them EVERY SINGLE ONE OF EM(!!!) says some bull-honkey (trying to watch my language) about "Proud to serve USDA Grain-fed Beef"! Why on earth would you brag about the fact that you serve the same sh.... bull-honkey... that they can get in the grocery store? I even had a waitress one time go on and on about how the grain added extra marbling and made the meat better. I asked her if she has ever had grass-fed beef, and she says "Cows aren't supposed to eat grass" I kid you not! I turned green and asked for a baked potato. I'm not eating any of their meat.

And Heaven only knows what she thinks chickens are supposed to eat. Good grief! the corporations are going to have every think that breathes eating nothing but corn in the next few years...


OK, I can put on my happy face again now

 

[RHRanch]

I don't know where you folks are getting that "tough" grass fed steak... I've had grass fed steak and it was fine. I think the reason some people don't like grass fed beef is that they have been conditioned to like that fatty beef, similar to how a lot of people don't like home raised heritage chicken meat because they are used to grocery store chicken.

 

[herfrds]

Roomy corrals with cattle laying down. One low spot that was holding water. Clean corrals. A great loading chute.

Nothing immoral or unethical there.

 

[punk-a-doodle]

Quote:
If there is not, I personally would suggest we seriously look at what we want to use land for (ie. McMansions? Golf courses? Food growing? Housing? Dedicated Easter egg hunts (my vote)?), and what balance we want between population growth and quality of life and environment.

 

[cassie]

Grass fed beef? Is there really enough land for cattle to be grass fed? Already ranchers have begun taking their cattle to gaze on public lands. Public lands with native wildlife. Wildlife which is being destroyed (or/an hunted and trapped) in order to provide more grazing for the cows.
Cows are meant to graze, not really eat corn, grains or rendered meat, but you get what you pay for.

Most of the beef cattle in this country are raised on grass and finished on grain. Beef cows run on pasture, are bred on pasture and calve (give birth) on pasture. The calves are sold as feeders at several months of age and go to a feedlot to be finished on grain. Grass fed beef stays on pasture and does not go to the feedlot. The quality of grass fed beef varies a lot, and it takes a lot more time to properly finish a beef on grass than it does on grain. Grass fed beef has a different flavor and different fat than grain fed. Some people prefer it and some, like me, don't.

I don't know where the rendered meat comes from. Last I heard animal products were no longer added to feed for ruminents, of which cattle are one, because of mad cow disease.

 

[cassie]

I laughed when I read your post. I have yet to meet anyone, anyone at all, involved in food processing at any level who couldn't tell you stories about why you didn't want to eat whatever it was they were processing. That was true whether it be it animal, vegetable, or, I suspect, mineral. As for me, as long as it won't hurt me, I just don't wanna know.

 

[OldGuy43]

Personally, it is my opinion that "organic" is the latest buzz word promoted by Mad' Ave. and enacted into law at the behest of the big corporation lobbyists. My reasons for believing this are:

1. There are few if any proven health benefits to so-called organic foods.
2. The estimated cost for USDA organic certification averages to $750/farm.
3. Unless someone actually files a complaint there is no inspection or enforcement.
4. Even if the product is truly organic that does not guarantee that it tastes better or even if it's safer.

I agree that there is a problem with chemical pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers when they are used incorrectly. But it's quite a leap to suggest that because something is harmful when misused, it mustn't be used at all. I've heard that a little bit of arsenic is good for the complexion.

 

[Cold Canadian]

I personally like pastured beef over feed lot ( Grain Feed ) beef ? Free range is what I'm used to ? some Like ,some don't .

 

[cassie]

OK, I just need to blow off some steam here. I live in Texas, and around here, we have alot of steak houses and every one of them EVERY SINGLE ONE OF EM(!!!) says some bull-honkey (trying to watch my language) about "Proud to serve USDA Grain-fed Beef"! Why on earth would you brag about the fact that you serve the same sh.... bull-honkey... that they can get in the grocery store? I even had a waitress one time go on and on about how the grain added extra marbling and made the meat better. I asked her if she has ever had grass-fed beef, and she says "Cows aren't supposed to eat grass" I kid you not! I turned green and asked for a baked potato. I'm not eating any of their meat.

And Heaven only knows what she thinks chickens are supposed to eat. Good grief! the corporations are going to have every think that breathes eating nothing but corn in the next few years...


OK, I can put on my happy face again now

I have had both grain fed beef and grass fed beef. I don't much care for grass fed beef. It is a matter of personal preference. And the quality of the beef you get at the store has a lot to do with what grade it is. Much of the grocery store beef is grade Good. Some of the high end stores sell a more premium and expensive Choice grade. And the waitress is right. The grain does put marbling on the beef, and most people, including me, consider the result a superior product. Some people do prefer grass fed beef and it is probably better for you. I don't care if it is. I do not like the way grass fed beef tastes. Whenever I raised a beef steer for ourselves, the steer could run around in the small pasture, but I fed him hay and a LOT of grain. In fact, the last two months or so, I would feed him all the grain he would eat.

 

[lowbike1]

Cows weren't created/designed, or didn't evolve (depending on what you believe, not meant to be a creation/evolution debate) to eat grain, it has nothing to do with how it tastes, it has to do with ethics, and letting animals grow naturally... their digestive system doesn't function properly on a grain diet, not to mention the fact that the grain is fed to them in disgusting feedlots (google that)...
Grass fed beef also has 6x the omega 3 fatty acids, grass fed beef creates substantially less methane gas.... the list goes on and on and on...