Both food safety and personal health concerns may drive you to investigate the available alternatives to the factory-farmed feedlot beef that makes up most of our nation's meat supply. But the terminology used to describe alternative products can be confusing. There's "natural" beef and "organic" beef, for example, which are not the same thing--but rarely will beef producers or retailers clarify the difference for you at the point of sale.
Definition of Organic Beef
Organic beef must be certified by the USDA to meet stringent standards. The cows must be born and raised on certified organic pasture and fed only certified organic grain and grass. They can never receive any antibiotics or hormones, and they must have unrestricted access to the outdoors. These guidelines are subject to third-party verification and certification must be renewed annually.
Definition of Natural Beef
USDA standards for labeling beef as natural are much less stringent. "Natural" beef merely means that the beef is minimally processed, without flavorings, coloring, preservatives or synthetic additives. Note that this does not include hormones or antibiotics, which are permitted under USDA regulations, although individual producers may voluntarily choose to forgo use of these as well. The regulations do not address the cattle's food or environment--there is no requirement that the animals have access to the outdoors, nor are they forbidden to consume animal byproducts. There is no third-party verification or tracking of natural cattle herds. They can be processed in factory feedlots.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Organic Beef
Since organic beef can only be fed organic pasture or grain, it should be free from the danger of mad cow disease, which results when cattle are fed meat byproducts as part of their feed. Organic beef tends to be leaner than conventional beef; since fat provides flavor, some people feel it is also less flavorful as a result. It takes longer to raise cattle without providing growth hormones, and requires more space per animal. Partly as a result of these restrictions, the supply of organic beef sometimes cannot meet the demand, and thus organic beef can be hard to find and keep in stock at stores. As a result of the stringent regulations required to qualify for organic certification, organic beef is usually about twice the price of conventional beef.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Natural Beef
Many beef producers are using the label "natural" to sell beef that is raised differently than conventional beef--and to charge a premium for it. But as the producers are free define their own standards for their natural beef lines, the advantages and disadvantages of natural beef can vary widely from brand to brand.
Natural beef brands that are free of hormones and antibiotics can be better for human and environmental health than conventionally-raised beef. Natural beef is more affordable and more widely available than organic beef.
Buying Beef
It is important to note that neither natural beef nor organic beef guarantees food safety. Whether organic beef has greater nutritional value is still under study; also still under scientific scrutiny is the exact effect the hormones given conventional beef have on the human consumer. Organic beef is clearly the more environmentally friendly choice, however, in that it reduces pollution caused by feedlots as well as reducing pesticide and herbicide contamination. Refraining from antibiotic use in raising livestock also has a demonstrated health benefit in that it reduces the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria strains that can eventually infect humans.
Member Comments