What does "grass-fed" mean?

[Trac]

Outside the obvious, of course...

I've been wondering about the term "grass-fed." Has grass-fed beef been eating grass constantly, all it's life, or for "x" amount of time before slaughter, or what exactly does that mean??

I buy organic beef from the grocery store (expensive, yes, but we don't really eat much beef), but nowhere on the package does it use the term "grass-fed." I assume that means it's fed other organic feed (as well as grass)? And...being in the Canadian prairie...I wonder if that's what we get, because of the whole winter/snow issue??

[CrunchyChristianMama]

If it's labeled organic, but not grass-fed, it means it's fed organic feed (probably soy and corn).

To be 100% grass-fed it must consume only grass for all it's life. It can be done in colder climates by feeding them grass that was harvested earlier in the year. The nutrient content of the meat is notably different (and much better imo) in grass-fed beef. Most grocery stores don't carry it, but you can probably find a farmer nearby who does.

[Picturesque]

Most commercial beef, including that labeled "organic" is pasture-raised on grass for most of it's life. In order to shorten the time til the beef is ready for slaughter, the beef is then placed on an all corn diet, which fattens the beef up quickly, but also makes the beef very unhealthy. The corn tears up their stomachs and digestive systems so badly that if the beef weren't slaughtered, they would die anyway. The meat produced in this way also contains a much greater percentage of saturated fat. Grass-fed beef is pastured all the way up until slaughter. It's more time consuming, but the beef produced is much healthier. HTH!

[Trac]

Thanks!