Switching to Grass Fed Beef: Why & How to Do it Affordably

Maybe you've seen a "grass fed" label at the grocery store and wondered what it was all about. Maybe you've heard something about grass fed meat being healthier or more sustainable. Maybe you've even decided to switch to grass fed meat...but aren't sure how to make it happen. Not long ago, I began the switch to grass fed meat. Here's what I've learned.

Why Switch to Grass Fed?

Because, well, it's natural. It wasn't until the 20th century that cows and other farm animals were fed a diet consisting mostly of grain. (And then only because of an over-abundance of corn, followed by the realization that corn fed animals gained weight very quickly.) Cows are designed to eat grass. They are designed to spend their days grazing. And when we eat grass fed beef, our health benefits.

For one thing, grass fed beef is higher in Omega-3s that help keep us happy and make our bodies work better. Plus, grass fed beef has less fat, is lower in calories, has more vitamin A, E and beta-carotene, and is higher in antioxidants. (Source.) Better still, grass fed meat is usually also free of hormones and antibiotics that can reduce our health. (Read labels to be sure.)

But Not All Meat!

If you're buying beef, bison, venison, or lamb, by all means look for grass fed. But grass fed chickens and pigs? Nope. Both chickens and pigs naturally eat meat - and depriving them of their natural diet isn't healthy for them. (We don't really know for sure how it affects humans who eat them.) The good news is, in the U.S. it's illegal to sell chickens that have received hormones. Hormones are illegal for pork, too.



Grass Fed vs. Grass Finished

Read labels carefully! There is a big difference between "grass fed" and "grass finished." "Grass finished" means the animal was fed grain in a stall most of it's life, but then was allowed to graze or eat grass shortly before butching. "Grass fed" means the animal grazed all it's life.

But It's Expensive!

Yes, grass fed beef is more expensive than conventionally raised beef. But that's changing. More and more people are interested in eating grass fed meat, which should bring prices down. But there are at least four ways I've found to reduce the cost of grass fed meat right now.

#1: Look for sales. My local grocery store frequently has grass fed meat on sale. Better yet, they often put it in their clearance section where I can buy it for the same price (and sometimes less!) than coventially grown meat. (Just know that clearance meat has been sitting around a bit; it should be eaten that day, or frozen for later use.)
Grass fed beef has less fat, but it's easy to make it tender.

#2. Buy it from a farmer. Many local farmers raise grass fed animals and will sell you a whole, half, or quarter of a cow. This requires a large freezer and a chunk of money to buy your meat in bulk, but it is generally cheaper in the long run. (Bear in mind that most farmers butcher sometime in the late summer or fall.)

#3. Choose a different meat. Many of us love our beef, but there are definitely cheaper meats out there. One that might surprise you is lamb. I've found that I can often buy grass fed lamb at the grocery store for much less than any other type of meat.

#4. Check local butchers. Sometimes - but not always - it's cheaper to buy grass fed meat from a good old butcher shop, rather than a grocery store. Especially if you look for sales. For example, one of my local butchers recently announced they had more than the usual amount of grass fed bison, so they were selling it cheap, first come, first serve.

But it Tastes Different!

I've not found this to be true at all. In fact, when I switched to grass fed, I was surprised by how much fat there was in my beef; I'd always read that grass fed beef was super-lean, and expected it to taste differently because of this. That said, the leanness of grass fed can make the meat is a bit tougher. It's pretty easy to work around that, though. Just use a meat tenderizer; or put salt on the cut overnight, then wash it off; or use a cooking method (like braising or stewing) that's often used for tougher cuts.

Have you switched to grass fed meat? 

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