Grass Fed Grass Finished Beef
At Helstrom Farms we not only want to provide safe and healthy meats, we also want to keep consumers well informed. Beware of grass fed label claims and be sure you are getting the product you want, true grass fed grass finished beef. Here is some information to assist in your purchasing decision!
Know Your Farmer!!
Grass-fed beef is a passion of mine I tend to talk about it quite often. I get discouraged because I hear this all the time: “Yeah, I know what grass fed is, I buy beef from a local farmer.” And I respond with asking if the farmer ever feeds grain? Reply. “I’m not sure, but the cows are out in the pasture.”
If you like to buy local and not concerned with grain finishing, please continue to support your local farmer. However if you want true non-GMO, grass fed/grass finished beef make sure you ask how the animal is being fed. Most farmers/ranchers are honest hard-working folks who love to talk about their livelihood and how they care for their livestock.
Grass fed, Grass finished…what’s the difference?
Keep in mind that a legal claim can be made that beef is “grass fed” as long as the animal has access to pasture, even if grain is fed. Studies have proven that even small amounts of grain feeding wipes out the benefits that grazing provides.
Grass finished and 100% grass fed are synonymous terms regulated by the USDA and truly mean no grain feeding, ever! It is difficult to find someone raising 100% grass finished beef. The reason is because raising animals in this fashion is time consuming and expensive. It takes up to a year longer and 1.5 times as much pastureland to bring grass finished beef to a marketable weight compared to grain finishing. Finding beef animals that can thrive on grass alone is another challenge. Feeding large amounts of corn since the 1950’s has resulted in cattle that know how to grow only in a feedlot.
Trusted, Local, MN Grass-Fed and Finished Beef
Despite these challenges we chose to convert to a 100% grass finished beef ranch nine years ago. At this time the health claims were conclusive. While store bought beef was being linked to heart disease and many other health concerns, grass fed beef was proven to be beneficial for your lifestyle. We took the challenges head on and committed to providing you with the best product possible. Each year the process has gone smoother and the beef keeps getting tastier!
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