Grass Fed Beef
Ever since visiting New Zealand earlier this year, I have been particularly interested in grass fed beef and free range animals. New Zealand is fortunate, they have lots of land with few people. The tour books all mention that there are more sheep than people in New Zealand. The food there is excellent, not just the meat, the seafood, and the produce is great and mostly organic.
California has Proposition 2 on the ballot which is about confined animals, allowing them more space to move around in their cages (if it passes) by 2015. However, it is not about free range or grass fed, so although initially interested in this measure I think I will vote against it. Instead I intend to vote with my pocket book, I have started to purchase free range and grass fed meat and I will continue to do so.
Free range meat products tend to be very expensive. I have started to look for deals. Ralphs has some ground Buffalo meat that is excellent. Marukai has free range chicken. There is a vendor at the Torrance Farmer’s Market on Saturdays with free range chicken meat and eggs (I’ll get the vendor’s name next time I’m there). Trader Joes has New Zealand lamb. Whole Foods has grass fed beef. The prime cuts are expensive but the stew meat is ok in price. All of the grass fed meats tend to be lean which is of course more healthy. Besides that, I want food products without pesticides and antibiotics. Will my family live longer because of it? No one knows for sure but I think so.
After researching the local stores, I am also looking for options to purchase online. I think to make sense I need to purchase in large quantities to minimize the shipping costs. I have a large freezer so have space to store some meat. We actually only eat beef and chicken and pork 2 – 3 nights a week so it’s not a huge part of the budget. We eat seafood often and sometimes vegetarian meals.
The first online merchant I am trying is La Cense Beef. They are based in Montana and have Black Angus beef, all grass fed. No grain, no pesticides, no antibiotics, no hormones. The benefits they say are less fat and caleries, higher in Omega 3’s and more antioxidants. I knew about the less fat but surprised to hear about the Omega-3s and antioxidants. Here’s what they say about it, “Grass-fed beef gleans many of its health benefits from the nutrients in the grass. The grass at the La Cense Ranch is high in Omega-3 fatty acids because they act as a natural plant anti-freeze. These Omega-3s are then present in the meat and dairy products of grass-fed beef. ”
The prices at La Cense Beef seemed pretty good until I noticed that in some cases it was not per pound but per 7-8 ounces. Sirloin steak is $9.49 for 7 oz. A pot roast is $18.99 for 3 pounds. I found a deal for free shipping and will try that.
The website mentions standard shipping 6 – 10 days, that can’t be. Then expeditied and overnight. I guess I have to go through the order process to see if my “free shipping” is expedited or overnight. Looking forward to trying this meat.
Update, the free shipping is 6 – 10 days. No way. I’ll go with $25 off. Be sure not to click on free shipping links on the site, or you’ll lose the $25 off.