What you should know about "Grass Fed" labeling

For those who want to buy real grassfed with a label they can trust:

• Buy from a farmer you know, and ask plenty of questions. Do you supplement with grain or grain by-products such as brewers and distillers grain or by-products from ethanol production? Where do you get your animals? Do you use antibiotics or hormones? Do you feed your animals in confinement?

• If you don’t have the luxury of knowing your producer personally, then look for the American Grassfed Approved logo. It’s the first and only standard developed by producers, range scientists, veterinarians, animal nutritionists, and other experts that guarantees the meat comes from animals fed a 100-percent forage diet, never confined to a feedlot, never fed antibiotics or hormones, and born and raised on American family farms. No other certification offers those assurances, and no other grassfed program uses true third-party audits to ensure compliance.

• Avoid buying inexpensive grocery store grassfed. Chances are good that it’s imported– although now that Congress has eliminated County of Origin Labeling, there’s no way to be certain—and the animals were probably confined and supplemented with some form of grain.

• Avoid buying meat with a grassfed percentage on the label. It’s either grassfed or it’s not. Studies have shown that even a small amount of grain in the animal’s diet affects the nutritional profile of the meat.

Reprinted from the Cornucopia Institute - more info