Grass Vs. Grain Fed Beef Discussion Turns Ugly

[grassfarmer]

I've expanded my retailing business as quickly as i
wanted to JD - I don't need advice from someone that
isn't even in the business.
I think if you check back you will see it was you doing
the spouting - as Mallee correctly pointed out I never
claimed my beef was the best merely passed on my
customers perception of my product which is all
important.

[newguy]

Grass fed beef would have a darker fat
and not as marbled as grain fed. Even
corn fed is not as good as Canadian
barley fed beef. Think a good chef can
marinate or whatever and have a grass
fed or lower cut steak like sirloin
taste very good. It does make one wonder
how consumers say do not make energy
with grain but use it to improve the
taste of my steak . That marbled steak
may be very expensive in the future. But
as long as people will pay then provide
him with a product.

[JDGreen]

Crap grassie. U still don't answer the questions. You know who your customer base is, and they are not educated in agriculture, animal husbandry, safe food production, etc. Once again I will congratulate you on your success but don't play the "your not in the biz card" Go on and peddle to the urbanites all you want, but don't play others for fools.

[JDGreen]

Newguy you are correct, however any cut of beef that must be marinated to taste "good" and be "somewhat tender", is not worth calling a steak.

[grassfarmer]

Newguy, those are common perceptions of grassfed
that I would disagree with because we have proven
them wrong. We have cattle that marble superbly off
grass - the answer lies in the genetics. We also get a
good firm, white fat cover on the cattle because we
know how to grow high energy grass in the month
of September - one of this area's natural advantages
for grass fattening cattle. Getting these two
components right is not easy for many in a country
with little recent history of grass fattening cattle but
they are not rocket science for those of us that grew
up with a tradition of grass fattening.

You say "Even corn fed is not as good as Canadian
barley fed beef." Says who? the cattle fattener in
Nebraska? the US consumer? There is no "best" - it's
all about consumer preference and opinion.

Last time I checked consumers didn't need to pass a
test on agriculture, animal husbandry or safe food
production before they could buy beef JD. Funny
thing is though the urbanites that you so despise
that are looking for an alternate product generally
are better informed on agriculture, animal
husbandry and safe food than those urbanites that
blindly buy their meat at Walmart or McDonalds. If
you don't want to supply urbanites with beef at all I
would suggest we'll need another herd reduction as
they make up over 80% of the population province
and country wide.

[checking]

I have a problem with, and I think most higher paying consummers of a beef product would as well if they knew their raiser/grower was advocating using lower quality land to grow them their tastier beef.

Would you not want them to know that you were using the best quality land available, vegetables and grain be damned? Otherwise, it's hoodwinking, and someone is correct about the smarts of your clients.

[JDGreen]

Thats funny grassie. I don't depsie urbanites, but I have many family member and friends living in the big city that fit your customer base. Although they think they are alternative, they are beyond ignorant. Ok legitimate question grassie.. How many acres of grassland are there that could produce grass fed beef in Canada? How many acres of this could be used for beef finishing vs. cow/calf operations to supply the finishing and stock replacement? How many head per acre on average could be used for this purpose. Is it even possible to supply all the beef demand with this model?? Or are we just assuming that all beef should be grass fed until we realize there isn't enough grassland to do so?? Would marginal grainland have to come out of production and be seeded back to grass to support this model? What genetics (specifically breed) are you achieving these spectacular results with? What particular forage/grass varieties are you using?

[perfecho]

Well the Topic Line certainly plays out. Each to there own, some breeds finish on grain better, some on grass better....nice to know there is a choice!

[sumdumguy]

Would these be Black Angus cattle? Great Work!
This kind of success does not come without a
great deal of patience, hard work and
perserverqnce. And the best use of marginal land
- for sure. I'm sure if you could ask a cow what
kind of life she would prefer, she would pick the
wide open meadows over the overcrowded
feedlot any day. This likely has a lot to do with
your success. I too would pick your beef.

Good for you! Thanx for sharing.

[ASRG]

To each their own. Personally I prefer grassfed beef.
North Americans might be better off eating a lot less meat? Maybe we need a lot fewer cows? Demographics and changing eating habits are heading us in that direction?
Eventually the cost price squeeze will make beef a luxury item.