Is All Grass-Fed Created Equal?

Is All Grass-Fed Created Equal?

Did you know that not all grass-fed meat is created equal? Marketing companies and the food industry have realized the trend to eating grass-fed beef. People want to eat healthier. People want ethically raised food. The problem is that in order to capitalize on these trends, they have mislead us with popular labels. If we don't ask the right questions, we may be deceived.

We are one of the only farms in our area that produce 100% grass-fed and grass-finished beef and lamb. When I share what we do with friends and strangers around town, I often hear things like, "Oh, I've seen grass-fed meet sold at the grocery store or at the health food store!" to which I respond, "Is it also finished on grass?"

The loophole in the food industry right now is that as long as an animal has eaten grass at all in it's lifetime, it can be considered "grass-fed". It's marketing at its finest.

You see, all cattle begin by eating grass and nursing from mama until about 6-12 months. After that period of time, many farmers choose to fatten the animal on grain until it goes into processing. These animals are not 100% grass-fed. If they are sent to a feedlot, it also becomes a sanitary issue as mentioned in our previous blog, "Safe Beef".

At BF Farms we allow the animals to continue eating grass their entire life. The main difference is in the nutrition you are receiving. You eat what "Norma Jean" eats. Here are the health benefits to 100% grass-fed beef and lamb vs an animal finished on grain:

• Higher levels of Omega 3s - an essential fatty acid that reduces inflammation and lowers cholesterol
• Higher levels of CLA - a fatty acid that improves brain function and reduces the risk of cancer
• Higher levels of vitamins and minerals including vitamins A and E
• Lower levels of Omega 6s - a fatty acid that causes inflammation and raises cholesterol
• Lower levels of cholesterol elevating saturated fatty acids
• Lower levels of overall fat content

There is a difference and we want you to benefit from a 100% grass-fed animal and all of the nutrition it brings! We work hard so that our animals receive a grass-fed diet year round. We work hard so that we can be proud of that "grass-fed" label. So next time you're at the grocery store, health food market, or farmer's market, ask the important question: "Is it also grass finished?"

BF-Farms, LLC, Oklahoma's source for 100% grass-fed beef and lamb.

Meet our Family

Meet our BF Farms Family

We would love for you to meet our BF Farms family! Here is a little synopsis of our roles here on the farm:

Doug Benkendorf-Third Generation

Doug is the visionary behind BF Farms and our land owner. He also helps with projects large and small, as the need arises. He is constantly moving our organization forward and seeking improvement.

Jayne Benkendorf-Third Generation

Jayne is the marketing and sales coordinator for our organization. If you know her at all, you know that she is gifted in sharing about our grass-fed beef and lamb and is always building relationships with everyone around her.

Kamie Sallee-Fourth Generation

Kamie is co-owner and ranch manager for the farm. She cares for the animals, making sure they are fed and healthy, moving them around from pasture to pasture to receive a well balanced diet. She also handles the administration for the farm.

Ephraim Benkendorf-Fifth Generation

Ephraim is co-owner, working closely with Kamie to fulfill the regular ranch chores. More importantly, he is responsible for planting the grasses our beef and lamb feed on. He makes sure that we can call our animals "grass-fed".

Ashley Mantz-Fifth Generation

Ashley runs the chicken coup and the family garden. She calls the chickens her babies and collects the eggs for direct market.

Brian Sallee-Fifth Generation

Brian is a photographer and web developer. You can see his skills for photography and web development on our website, Facebook, and other marketing materials we have sent out. Brian also helps out as a farm hand when needed.

Nicole Sallee-Fifth Generation

Nicole is our co-marketing director and helps with sales. She manages the Facebook page, blog, newsletter, and events for the farm. She also helps Ashley in the garden.

"A family that farms together, stays together."

BF-Farms, LLC, Oklahoma's source for 100% grass-fed beef and lamb.

Hunters and Gatherers

How many of us would consider prehistoric Hunters & Gatherers as our cousins?

Daniel Lieberman, PhD and professor of biology at Harvard University, says that if we want to reduce some of our late-life ailments, we need to pay more attention to our cousins – the Hunters & Gatherers.

Lieberman believes that humans today would be much healthier eating the Hunters & Gatherers’ diet than one based on grains and simple carbohydrates. The Hunters and Gatherers’ diet consisted mostly of wild meat (grass-fed), nuts, seeds, berries, vegetables, and tubers; whereas, the American diet today comes from 50% grain, grain products, and potatoes. And if you consider the fact that most meat comes from animals fed grain, this percent gets much higher – and even approaches 100% with some people.

We know that asking someone to never eat any grain products would be like asking newlyweds not to have sex! But if you think Dr. Lieberman is on to something, you may want to check out his book, The Story of the Human Body.*

Some of his facts and beliefs:

• The first thing a grain-fed diet does is rot our teeth.
• The diseases associated with mineral deficient grain are scurvy, pellagra, beriberi, goiter, & anemia.

These are what he calls the “mismatched diseases”:

• Type 2 diabetes
• Heart disease, osteoporosis, and colon cancer.

He describes a mismatched disease as one caused by eating a diet which we are genetically unprepared for.

Do you reckon that the genetics of our body today is similar to that of our prehistoric cousins, the Hunters & Gatherers? If so, then maybe we can understand why, when we feed our body something it is not designed for, this can cause health problems.

At BF Farms we believe grain-fed cattle can cause certain health issues – in cattle as well as in humans.

* We do not pass judgment or endorse Dr. Lieberman’s theory of human evolvement.

www.BF-Farms.com

BF-Farms, LLC, Oklahoma's #1 source for 100% grass-fed beef and lamb.