07-05-2022, 11:54 PM
(07-05-2022, 11:12 PM)ChiefD Wrote: Yeah, I'm pretty leery of getting red meat at the store. What do you think of organic grass fed beef? I almost always get this type when I get any red meat. It doesn't have preservatives, is certified organic, and is grass fed beef. It's hella expensive, so I only get it 2-3 times a year, but I think it tastes way better than the ground chuck I used to get. I'm very much afraid to buy meat at all anymore, because of things I've heard like what you said earlier.
Two things (well, maybe three):
1. First, in direct response to your question... Depends on where it comes from. Sorry, that's a really crappy non-answer, but unfortunately you have to realize once a trendy 'buzz-word' turns into something people can make a profit with then people will start figuring out ways to bend every imaginable rule to the point where the original 'buzz-word' doesn't mean anything anymore. In any case, truly "grass fed" beef (like what we raise) is better. However, (and I hate to say this)...if I take 'grass' and grind it up into pulp, add water and then press it into millions of cubes, and then jam 300 steers into a 100x100 foot pen...is my beef still "grass fed"??? Sadly, the answer is, yes. Now, we don't do that, and to differentiate it we'd have to add other words like "open range" and "terrestrial, not processed, grass"...which is a shame, but it illustrates the point of how people will abuse the trust of consumers to the point of practically poisoning people to make a buck!
2. The word "Organic" is probably one of the most over-used, and most badly abused, bastardized, words in the history of mankind. Probably 95% (my estimate) of people have absolutely no idea what "Organic" even means when it comes to food. For example, most people think 'organic' crop products don't use pesticides. Actually, the opposite is true; they use more pesticides than virtually every other kind of agricultural product. Why? Because there are so many other restrictions their crops are 100% vulnerable to pests...and I'm not even talking about GMO products here (yet). Worse, to get further into this discussion in detail we quickly devolve into graduate and doctoral levels of Chemistry to debate the pros and cons. Furthermore, much of these fields have had little to no long-term studies performed to determine the 'truth' regardless of what anyone claims...on either side. As it relates to beef specifically, 'antibiotics' are the prime target of "organic" production. Here again, few understand what antibiotics are and how they work. Yes, some antibiotics are truly harmful. However, this cannot be said for all antibiotics. Organic production of beef prohibits 'all' antibiotic use. Net result? The organic products many buy have a much higher probability of bacteria which does not exist in other kinds of production. Bottom line...just because it says "Organic" doesn't necessarily mean it's healthy-er. But, in the same breath, not saying "organic", today, removes what little rules there are otherwise, so it's kind of a double edged sword.
3. We probably qualify (actually, we DO qualify) as an organic producer, but I would never advocate going and getting the certification!! Never! Why? Whatever marginal profit margin that word "Organic" might generate will be eaten up 10x over with costs in other areas, some even completely unrelated to beef production! This is a classic example of...'watch out what ya' wish for!' And if that wasn't bad enough...wanna' know how to make an enemy of every neighbor for about 5 miles in every direction? Stick an FDA Certified "Organic" sign at the entrance to your ranch! Why the hostility from others? Because now not only do I control what I do on my production facility (ranch or whatever), but I now also have legal influence over my neighbors and can sue them if they do something on their land which causes me to lose my certification. Like what, you may ask? Oh, something simple like using spraying a fertilizer on their corn which isn't FDA approved organic. Here's a guy who was minding his own business, and suddenly I'm now all up in the middle of his business, on his land, land that I have absolutely zero claim to. Sadly, it's an almost Biblically complex subject, food production, and it really shouldn't be!
Here's the bottom line; it can be summed up in an infamous phrase..."We're the Government, and we're here to help!"