Note: This is a loose transcription of the video, ‘Meat Part 3 – What is Free Range, Grass Fed, Organic Meat?’
Bex: So, you’re painting a very detailed picture for us here – the two ways we can have our animals treated, produced and sold before they come to our table. And so for the consumer who is looking for a butcher they want to buy from and they’re seeing all these labels, is there actually any difference between grass-fed and pasture-fed?
Andrew: No, it’s essentially the same thing.
Bex: And free-range vs. free roaming? Is it just terminology?
What is Free Range, Grass Fed, Organic Meat?
Bex: And speaking of accreditation, what about meat that is labelled organic, how does that differ at all from the other meats?
Andrew: Organic is a different category. We don’t promote organic meat here necessarily as it would involve too much segregation of meats here. I prefer just free-range. Free-range to me is natural and organic, while some grain-fed (animals) might be fed with organic grain and called organic. I think some of these small boutique organic growers are fantastic, but I am not too sure about the validity of the mass-procured organic brands.
Bex: So when it comes to meat, grass-fed is a better first indicator than organic.
Andrew: For me, personally, it is. You can’t get better than a natural diet (for the animals). Simple as that.
Bex: Thank you. And is there an exception to the rule? Because I know for example you hear about Wagyu beef, and Wagyu beef is known as grain-fed cow. Tell us more about Wagyu.
Andrew: Wagyu is the exception to the rule, if you’re going to sell Wagyu then you should sell it for the glory of the meat. The meat comes from the Kobi breed. It is known to be a breed of cattle which is able to send the fat from the surface of the skin to get into the muscle, there by creating this marbling effect. So Wagyu is different. Our Wagyu spends a year a part in the field and then spends a year in the feedlot eating grain, but the grain has no antibiotics in it and it’s also just vegetable grain. Yeah, that’s the only grain-fed meat we sell here.
Other videos in this series:
Meat Part 1 – You CAN Afford Grass Fed Meat!
Meat Part 2 – Do You Know Where Your Meat Comes From?
Meat Part 4 – What makes meat lean and tender?
Meat Part 3 – What is Free Range, Grass Fed, Organic Meat? – September 2013