Making Sense of Grass-fed Beef

1. Making Sense of Grass-fed Beef Matthew H. Poore, PhD Extension Ruminant Nutritionist Department of Animal Science North Carolina State University

2. Beef Cattle Production Cycle Cow-Calf Production Calf Weaning Replacement Heifer Development (on farm) Stocker cattle production (500 to 800 lbs) Feedlot phase (up to 1200 to 1400 lbs)

3. Lasting changes in RELATIVE prices drive changes in production systems GEOFF BENSON, ARE, NCSU 3

4. Target MarketWhat do consumers want? • “Conventional freezer beef” • “Natural” • “Produced Without Hormones or Antibiotics • “Lean” • “Local” • “Pasture-fed” • Forage only – ”Grass (Forage) Fed” • Limited grain • Organic

5. Don’t slam your neighbor to try to develop your market! • Beef in general is a very safe food • Consumer preferences will allow you to develop your market • Promote the positive aspects of your product • Don’t resort to misinforming the consumer about the safety of conventional products

6. Some producers of grass-fed beef have told customers that conventional beef is from animals fed: • Chicken feathers • Chewing gum/candy • Cement • Meal Made from Dead Animals • Byproducts are used, but usually in growing programs • Unusual byproducts are used at low levels supported by research and regulatory oversite

7. Conventional Beef • Finishing phase • Confinement feedlots • High grain levels/minimal roughage • Steroid hormone implants • Feed additives. Ionophores, antibiotics • Currently most diets are comprised of corn, distiller's grains, and alfalfa or corn silage as roughage • Sometimes other byproducts are fed

9. Work Closely With Your Processor • Understand expected yield and track your own yield: • Live weight - 1100 lb ($1.25/lb) • Carcass weight - 660 lb ($2.08/lb or $2.81/lb with processing cost) • Marketable product - 330 lb ($4.16/lb or $5.62/lb with processing cost) • Yours may differ from this and only by careful record keeping can you improve your retail meat yield.

10. Grain-fedorGrass-fedor Something in between?

11. Characteristics of Grass-Finished Beef • Generally leaner • No animal byproducts • No GMOs are used • CLA is higher • Omega-3 fatty acids are higher • Generally not as tender • Different flavor (“off-flavor”)

12. Nutrient Profile of Grass-Fed and Conventional Ground Beef Leheska, et al., 2009 Journal of Anim Sci 86:3575

13. Influence of Supplementing Grass-fed CattleWith 1% of Body Weight as Soyhulls Baublits et al, 2004 Meat Sci. 68:297 & 72:100

14. What Influences Flavor of Grass-fed and Locally Finished Beef?

15. Performance of steers finished in NC on grass only, with grain on grass or with 60 days in the feedlot following grass Harvey, Mueller and Larick, 1990

17. Influence of forage on growth, carcass characteristics and beef flavor Harvey, Mueller and Larick, 1990

18. Consumer acceptability of beef from cattle finished on grain or various types of pasture (Auburn)

19. Recent NCSU Research (Washburn, Poore, and Hansen) Grain-finished steers Gain in last 84 days ~ 3.3 lbs/d Grass-finished ~1.25 lb/d Grass Grain

21. Hot carcass weight by feeding regimen

22. Consumer Sensory Scores for Three Types of Beef (1 to 9 hedonic scale)

23. Forced preference choice by taste panel

24. How Important is Breed of Cattle? • There is variation in carcass traits within all breeds • Breeds do vary in their ability to marble • Charolais vs Angus • Fleshing ability on forage is a key trait for forage finishing systems • Cow size relative to marketable yield is an important consideration

25. What are the Econimics of a Local Finishing System?

26. Consider “Model” Systems Producers Might Use • Cow-calf with calf sold at weaning • Cow-calf with calves weaned and sold after a 45 to 120 day preconditioning period • Finishing system 1. Cow-calf with calves weaned and then grown on forages up to 22 months of age. • Finishing system 2. Cow-calf with calves weaned and then grown on forages up to 19 months old and then finished on concentrate (2% bwt) for 60 days • Finishing system 3. Cow-calf with calves weaned and preconditioned to 11 months and then finished on concentrate (2% bwt) for 120 days

27. Lbs of Forage TDN (per Cow Unit) Needed in Various Beef Production Systems

28. Enterprise Net Returns compared to Cows only, Oct. Calf Sold Live GEOFF BENSON, ARE, NCSU 28

29. Enterprise Net Returns compared to Cows only, March Calf Sold Live GEOFF BENSON, ARE, NCSU 29

30. Return From a Grass-Finishing System Depends on How You Price the Cattle • Returns calculated from Dr. Benson's Budgets • Commodity beef price ($85/cwt) • - $290 per head • Common price point for Local Beef ($125/cwt) • + $133 per head

31. Carefully Track Your Costs and Revenue if You are Economically Motivated

32. Getting Started From the Beef Perspective • What is your current management level? • Do you have a controlled breeding season • Do you have a good health program • Do you have a good forage program • Do you wean and precondition your calves • Are genetics uniform and in tune with the desired market • Do you consume your own beef? • Do you have the management ability and desire to take on several new activities?

33. Questions We Need to Consider • Is there a better breed or genetic type for grass-based systems? • What conditions lead to off-flavors beyond what anyone desires? • Do differences in nutrient content of grass-fed beef make a significant difference in the context of a balanced diet? • How does your forage management need to change to support acceptable animal growth rates for finishing? • How can you effectively work with your processor? • How can you develop a marketing system that will allow you to make it work?

34. What is Grass-Fed Beef??100% Grass/Forageor Pasture-Finished/Natural with Strategic Concentrate Feeding