Pasture-Raised vs. Grass-Fed: Understanding the Differences

When you’re paying a premium for healthy and sustainable products for your family, the definitions matter. Here's some more info to help you understand.

The USDA regulates dozens of different labels describing how meat was produced, but the labels only define minimum standards. This system leaves consumers exposed to a frustrating amount of greenwashing and marketplace deceit. 

To the average consumer, a pasture-raised label might seem the same as grass-fed. While they are similar, they’re not the same per the USDA requirements.

Pasture-raised animals must spend a significant amount of their lives on pasture, but the regulations on providing food are more relaxed. Whether or not the animal is on pasture or leaves the barn is not regulated.

Even though pasture-raised animals receive various forms of feed beyond grass and forage, the benefits of raising animals in a more natural environment are significant.

Nutritional Benefits

• Vitamins - Grass-fed beef is rich in vitamins A, E, and B12. Vitamin A helps maintain healthy skin and hair, while vitamin E helps support a healthy immune system and eyesight. 
• Minerals - Grass-fed beef contains minerals like heme iron, zinc, selenium, and phosphorous 

Environmental Benefits

• Grass-fed beef preserves pastureland regenerates valuable topsoil, absorbs rainfall, and provides a sustainable food source for cattle. 
• Pasture-raised cows help increase plant diversity and encourage nutrient cycling in the soil. This creates a thriving ecosystem on farmland, without emissions-heavy tillage and artificial fertilizers.
• Pastured beef minimises the erosion of the soil that they pasture on. Compare this to grain fed beef and factory produced beef where the feedlots use less land per animal in a bid to increase farming efficiency.  

Animal Welfare Benefits

• Pasture-raised animals, experience less stress and disease and a better overall quality of life when they are able to mature on pastureland. This eliminates the overuse of antibiotics, along with offering a humane and ethical option for consumers.