First experience buying a 1/4 cow, and why

So I have been looking for grass fed beef options for awhile, somewhat tepidly, not knowing exactly where to look, but keeping it in the back of my mind.

Nutrition and better ways to feed the body is such a passion of mine, so I was so excited when one of my friends referred me to www.eatwild.com . FINALLY I found a great way to search out local farms who sell GRASS FED beef among other things (organic free range eggs and chickens.)

Although it took me a better part of 2 hours to find ANYONE from whom I could buy 1/4 grassfed cow from before NOVEMBER of this year…and that was back in early MAY! Who knew demand was so high, at least in the burbs of Chicago?!

Finally I found a SUPER CUTE PLACE somewhat near hear that had delivery date of only 1 month – JUST enough time for us to eat through our deep freezer.

SO WHY GRASS FED? WHATS THE BIG DEAL? If you watch the documentary FOOD INC from some eye opening info.

HERE IS THE GIST:

Among their findings:

In comparison with grain-fed beef,

GRASS FED BEEF IS:

lower in overall fat (thus calories, too)

lower in saturated fat

higher in Omega-3 fatty acids, which have been shown to be valuable in promoting heart health and preventing diabetes

lower in harmful Omega-6 fatty acids

higher in valuable vitamins and minerals, including vitamin E, the B vitamins thiamin and riboflavin, as well as calcium, potassium and magnesium

higher in conjugated linoleic acids, or CLAs, which may have powerful cancer-fighting properties.

Though its harder to find, you can definitely find 100% grass fed. Many places finish their cows off with corn to fatten them up – takes away from all the benefits! We learned today at the farm we went to, to pick up our meat, that if the pregnant mom of a cow has grain, it cant be considered 100% grass fed because it has had a trace of grain in its life! Pretty stringent from the American Grassfed Assoc, but great for quality control. We were also happy with this place – no antibiotics with the animals, no growth hormones, no chemicals in the ground. They are 100% organic!

We also saw today at this farm how the moms give birth to the calves and then are weened naturally, always being somewhat near the calves after weening and then separated, so they can still smell them. Then they go to a nearby pasture where they can still hear them. I loved seeing that firsthand!

We then saw how they roamed freely eating grass and how there was a river through the property they could drink from. Our kids got to even pet them. When we informed the kids that the cow they were petting is the hamburgers we will be eating, all four just stared at us blankly. Silence. I think it was too hard to correlate hamburgers with a large living animal in front of them. Over their heads 🙂

I am not a huge meat eater myself – maybe once a week, but we are excited to be on this journey of healthier eating!

My next homework?- finding chickens and eggs!