What is Grassfed?

Grassfed Beef is rightfully being talked about more and we see the interest increasing. What does it mean to us specifically? Don’t all cows eat grass? For us, grassfed means that the whole herd, cows, calves, bulls and steers going to the butcher, are never fed grains or other non-grass feeds. Not everything our cattle eat is technically grass. Other categories of acceptable plants found in our diverse pastures include legumes such as clover and alfalfa, forbs such as plantain, chicory and lambs quarter, and browse such as honeysuckle and leaves from sweet gum and poplar trees. The diversity in diet provides a balanced diet of nutrition, vitamins and minerals. We also offer a natural blend of salt and minerals to complete their nutritional needs. What we do not feed are any grains, grain byproducts or concentrates. These grains certainly can fatten cattle, but create environmental concerns, cattle health problems and economic challenges.

Just being grassfed is not all that’s needed to produce quality beef for our customers. The right breeding program is needed to have cattle that perform well on our farm. Some modern cattle genetics produce steers that won’t do well unless they are on the super high nutrition plan found at feedlots. Grazing management, in order to have enough quality grass to feed our herd, is another piece to quality grassfed beef. There are other aspects to good grazing management that I get excited about including positive environmental impact, a part of fighting climate change. And properly finishing the steers on grass alone is the other key to great grassfed beef. We will do posts soon on genetics, grazing management and grass finishing.