It's pretty well known that small family farms struggle to survive. The profit margin is often small, and many young people prefer to head for urban areas for an easier life. As more land has been consolidated by huge corporations and more cattle readied for market in feedlots, the situation has become more dire. However, the direct marketing of a product factory farms cannot provide has turned a profit for many a grass fed beef farm.
The idea of producing meat for the market on grass rather than on grain fits very well with modern economic factors and preferences. Since they can't win a price war with giant enterprises, small farmers realized they needed to find a niche in which they could succeed. The methods that successful entrepreneur farmers have come up with have spread across the industry and brought new life to families that want to live off the land.
Being more expensive than conventionally-raised meat has not frustrated the rise in popularity of this lean, free-range beef. Many consumers feel that factory farming has lowered the quality, taste, and nutritional content of food sold in conventional grocery stores. They are looking for more naturally-produced products and often prefer to buy locally. Farmers' markets are springing up all across the country, and grass-fed meats are found at many of them.
Research has validated the belief that home-grown produce and pastured meats are healthier than the usual mass-market fare. Chemical residues in picked-when-green produce and hormones and antibiotics in animals destined for human consumption concern many people. Especially when truck farms, orchards, and meat producers use few or no chemicals to grow and protect their crops and animals, the food is fresh, nutrient-rich, and flavorful.
Research has shown that meat from animals fed only on grasses, with no grain at any stage of their life, has a rich supply of essential fatty acids not found in conventional meats. The direct marketing of meat and produce, from farmers to consumers, means that foods should be fresh, should never have been subjected to radiation or chemicals that are used to retard spoilage, and should still provide vitamins that can be lost during a lengthy stay in cold storage.
For the farmer with acreage, the cost of raising cattle on pasture is less than feeding hay and grain. Many farmers who used to buy seed, fertilizer, herbicides, and pesticides in order to raise corn, wheat, and soybeans now concentrate on promoting the health of their pastureland. Grasses do not rob the soil of nutrients as crops like corn do; many of them, such as clover and alfalfa, actually improve the soil while they grow.
It takes more land and time to raise cattle naturally, and those who run feedlots are focused on getting large numbers of animals to market in as short a time as possible. For this reason, the grass-fed cow and pastured poultry growers do not have to compete as they did before. Raising consumer awareness of the differences in method and product keeps the market for natural meats growing.
There are big ranches out west that sell this kind of naturally-raised meat to large grocery chains. However, almost every grass fed beef farm is run by a single family wanting to make a good living and provide a quality product to their customers. They deserve our support.
The idea of producing meat for the market on grass rather than on grain fits very well with modern economic factors and preferences. Since they can't win a price war with giant enterprises, small farmers realized they needed to find a niche in which they could succeed. The methods that successful entrepreneur farmers have come up with have spread across the industry and brought new life to families that want to live off the land.
Being more expensive than conventionally-raised meat has not frustrated the rise in popularity of this lean, free-range beef. Many consumers feel that factory farming has lowered the quality, taste, and nutritional content of food sold in conventional grocery stores. They are looking for more naturally-produced products and often prefer to buy locally. Farmers' markets are springing up all across the country, and grass-fed meats are found at many of them.
Research has validated the belief that home-grown produce and pastured meats are healthier than the usual mass-market fare. Chemical residues in picked-when-green produce and hormones and antibiotics in animals destined for human consumption concern many people. Especially when truck farms, orchards, and meat producers use few or no chemicals to grow and protect their crops and animals, the food is fresh, nutrient-rich, and flavorful.
Research has shown that meat from animals fed only on grasses, with no grain at any stage of their life, has a rich supply of essential fatty acids not found in conventional meats. The direct marketing of meat and produce, from farmers to consumers, means that foods should be fresh, should never have been subjected to radiation or chemicals that are used to retard spoilage, and should still provide vitamins that can be lost during a lengthy stay in cold storage.
For the farmer with acreage, the cost of raising cattle on pasture is less than feeding hay and grain. Many farmers who used to buy seed, fertilizer, herbicides, and pesticides in order to raise corn, wheat, and soybeans now concentrate on promoting the health of their pastureland. Grasses do not rob the soil of nutrients as crops like corn do; many of them, such as clover and alfalfa, actually improve the soil while they grow.
It takes more land and time to raise cattle naturally, and those who run feedlots are focused on getting large numbers of animals to market in as short a time as possible. For this reason, the grass-fed cow and pastured poultry growers do not have to compete as they did before. Raising consumer awareness of the differences in method and product keeps the market for natural meats growing.
There are big ranches out west that sell this kind of naturally-raised meat to large grocery chains. However, almost every grass fed beef farm is run by a single family wanting to make a good living and provide a quality product to their customers. They deserve our support.
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