Grass fed vs. Grain Fed - Harvard gets it wrong!

In a study conducted by the Harvard School of Public Health with other prominent organizations, they concluded that consuming red meat can have negative long term health consequences. However, it appears that they did not distinguish between meat obtained from animals fed grains, corn or soy for all or a portion of their lives versus meat obtained from animals fed only grass for their entire life.

Corn Fed Beef #2 on Farmers do not eat list

Industry and medical experts in several fields were asked "what food should you not eat" some of the answers were interesting but right near the top was corn fed beef. 

Grass Fed vs. Grass Fed - Part 1

There is a lot of confusion among consumers of meat products about what all the labels mean; Certified Grass Fed, Organic, Natural and / or Pastured.  Unfortunately, the consumer is not helped much by industry participants who either are just sloppy about their labeling, inconsistent or sometimes deliberately misleading.  When you walk into the meat or deli section of the grocery store and see a cut of beef labeled "Grass Fed", is it actually grass fed, meaning that from life to death the animal was fed nothing but grass - no corn, grain or soy even in the last few days of its life?  And what about added growth hormones and antibiotics, which may not necessarily be unhealthy for you, but do you know how it affects the texture, taste and overall quality of the meat?

Your Are What Your Animals Eat

by Jo Robinson

In my investigation into pasture-based farming, I've stumbled upon an alarming state of affairs: few animal scientists see any link between animal feed and human food. "Feed animals anything you want," say the experts, "and it makes no difference to their meat, milk, or eggs." Because of this mindset, our animals are being fed just about anything that enhances the bottom line, including chicken feathers, sawdust, chicken manure, stale pizza dough, potato chips, and candy bars.

Here's a glaring example. A 1996 study explored the desirability of feeding stale chewing gum to cattle.1 Amazingly, the gum was still in its aluminum foil wrappers. Wonder of wonders, the experts concluded that bubblegum diet was a net benefit—at least for the producers. I quote: "Results of both experiments suggest that [gum and packaging material] may be fed to safely replace up to 30% of corn-alfalfa hay diets for growing steers with advantages in improving dry matter intake and digestibility." In other words, feed a steer a diet that is 30 percent bubblegum and aluminum foil wrappers, and it will be a more efficient eater. With a nod to public safety, the researchers did check to see how much aluminum was deposited in the various organs of the cattle. Not to worry. The aluminum content was "within normal expected ranges." As always, there was no mention of the nutritional content of the resulting meat.