100% Grass Fed Beef
We have been recently asked many questions about what our organic cattle are fed and if they are grass finished or grass fed. Our beef are 100% grass fed for their entire life and never receive any grains.
There are no government regulations that determine what constitutes grass fed or grass finished. These are marketing words that have been used to sell beef. Online you will read many definitions of these terms however they are all defined by the company or the farmer. That is why our beef packages say 100% Grass Fed Diet. By providing our customers with the percentage that they are fed grass and labeling it on the very front of our beef packages we are being transparent and trying to avoid the confusing and undefined terms.
In the summer our cattle are raised on our certified organic pasture where they are moved every day onto fresh pasture. We use a grazing method called time controlled grazing. This method means that we portion out the pasture using movable electric fencing. We then move the cattle onto the new grass when needed to provide the cattle with an abundance of fresh grass, while preventing compaction of the soil and overgrazing. This also allows lots of the grass to be retuned to the soil as organic matter and manure. The time spent in each pasture will vary throughout the year and is very dependant on the weather and how fast the grass is growing. With careful management this allows us to maximize the positive impacts that the grass have on the cattle and the cattle can have on the soil and the grass.
In the winter the cattle are fed certified organic hay and certified organic alfalfa pellets (this is organic alfalfa grass that is harvested at peak nutrition, dried and then pressed into pellets to reduce dust and make it easier for the cattle to eat).
Year round the cattle receive all natural organic minerals and vitamins to make sure that they are healthy.
Because we are certified organic our cattle do not receive any growth hormones, antibiotics, chemical insecticides, or animal by products at any time and all the grass and hay that they receive is certified organic, which means NON GMO and has never had any pesticides, herbicides or fungicides applied to it.
We know that by raising our animals on a certified organic 100% grass diet we are able to provide safe, clean and healthy meat to our family, friends and customers. We know that this diet is the best for the land, the cattle and the consumer.
Your Farmers
Ron and Sheila
The first picture is of the cattle on some fresh spring grass. The second picture is of the cattle eating some hay that had been put out for them this morning. In the background you can see their winter wind break that we add fresh straw to every few days so that they have a nice warm and dry place to bed down at night. Normally the cattle are fed in bunk feeders to reduce waste, however our tractor broke down and is in for repairs, so we laid the hay on the ground for the cattle to eat.
- Sunworks Farm
