Organic animal products

Question:

Do folks pay the big bucks for organic animal products (i.e free range, pastured, grain fed etc) because:

A: The animal is treated better than other animals

B: It tastes better

C: Better for one's Health

D: All of the above?

Just curious

[Robin Garr]

Question:

Do folks pay the big bucks for organic animal products (i.e free range, pastured, grain fed etc) because:

A: The animal is treated better than other animals

B: It tastes better

C: Better for one's Health

D: All of the above?

Just curious

For me, it's all of the above, although A and B, in no particular order, are the most important.

Mine is the same as Robin's: A and B in no particular order.

Except when it comes to my kids: then C is most important- I've started buying only Organic milk due to concerns about the hormones in regular milk.

Deb

I personally do not buy organic animal products on a regular basis. I'm not against them but I don't think they offer any benefits over regular animal products. I think in general they are just an excuse to charge more for a product. I realize some people are allergic to some of the various hormones or other potential additives but in general I do not think there's a big difference.

Recently I had an opportunity to test sample three steaks, one was Angus, one was Hereford and one was Organic and guess what? The organic one had the least flavor and the worst texture of the three and I'll bet it was also the most expensive.

I think If you buy it because of the treatment of the animals, you'd be disappointed to see how they're treated in many cases. To be considered organic doesn't in any way specifying how the animals are treated, it just dictates what they are fed and what additives are included in their diet.

I think it's a personal preference whether you think organic products are better for you or not and for me they're not.

For the most part, it's all of the above for me. I buy fresh eggs from the CSA to which we belong and I buy organic milk from Kroger. For some reason, I just buy regular cheese. I just haven't made that switch yet.

Any meat is bought by my husband - he doesn't buy organic meat since I don't eat it anyway so he knows I won't complain, lol.

To be honest though - in general it's more important to me to buy local rather than organic. A lot of our local farmers aren't "certified organic" for various reasons, but for all intents and purposes they are anyway.

Unfortunately, what the animals are fed is very much a part of the overall treatment they receive. Chickens are sometimes fed so many hormones that they have heart attacks when their bodies aren't able to handle the stress of growing at such a synthetically exaggerated rate.

[Robin Garr]

To be honest though - in general it's more important to me to buy local rather than organic. A lot of our local farmers aren't "certified organic" for various reasons, but for all intents and purposes they are anyway.

I think you've hit the nail on the head, Tina. Maybe "natural" is a better word for it than organic. Restated, I try to avoid buying industrially made, mass-produced food products in general and meat, poultry and eggs in particular. "Food miles" are important, too. I'll do all I can to support local/regional, artisanal producers in general, and I'll do all I can to avoid industrial producers in general. Food labeled "organic" at a Walmart or even a Kroger doesn't impress me, and even at Whole Foods, I want to see what the small print says.

But when I can buy direct from the farmer at our produce markets in season, or Green River grass-fed Kentucky beef at Doll's year-round, I'm there.

[Robin Garr]

Do folks pay the big bucks for organic animal products (i.e free range, pastured, grain fed etc)

One belated nit to pick, Heather: As I understand it, grass-fed is preferable for a variety of reasons, both in terms of animal treatment and environmental impact. "Grain-fed" implies that the animals are herded into feed lots and fattened up before slaughter; "grass-fed" animals are kept in pastures and not fattened. There's some sacrifice in marbling, but in my experience, grass-fed rib eye in particular still has plenty of internal fat to provide the flavor and tenderness you want. Grain feeding also has environmental costs in that raising grain to feed people directly is much more efficient than growing grain for the intermediate step of fattening beef.

If I'm off base on any of this, I'm sure the gurus here can help us straighten it out.

One belated nit to pick, Heather: As I understand it, grass-fed is preferable for a variety of reasons, both in terms of animal treatment and environmental impact. "Grain-fed" implies that the animals are herded into feed lots and fattened up before slaughter; "grass-fed" animals are kept in pastures and not fattened. There's some sacrifice in marbling, but in my experience, grass-fed rib eye in particular still has plenty of internal fat to provide the flavor and tenderness you want. Grain feeding also has environmental costs in that raising grain to feed people directly is much more efficient than growing grain for the intermediate step of fattening beef.

If I'm off base on any of this, I'm sure the gurus here can help us straighten it out.

I'm no guru, but I wanted to add that grain feeding is also an abnormal condition for a cow. They're more prone to illness, which is part of why they're fed so many antibiotics and so on.

I can recommend a great book - Michael Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilemma. It was a great read and very entertaining.

One belated nit to pick, Heather: As I understand it, grass-fed is preferable for a variety of reasons, both in terms of animal treatment and environmental impact. "Grain-fed" implies that the animals are herded into feed lots and fattened up before slaughter; "grass-fed" animals are kept in pastures and not fattened. There's some sacrifice in marbling, but in my experience, grass-fed rib eye in particular still has plenty of internal fat to provide the flavor and tenderness you want. Grain feeding also has environmental costs in that raising grain to feed people directly is much more efficient than growing grain for the intermediate step of fattening beef.

If I'm off base on any of this, I'm sure the gurus here can help us straighten it out.

I'm no guru, but I wanted to add that grain feeding is also an abnormal condition for a cow. They're more prone to illness, which is part of why they're fed so many antibiotics and so on.

I can recommend a great book - Michael Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilemma. It was a great read and very entertaining.

There is also a great read by Orville Schell (sp) of Niman-Schell et al (think Niman Ranch Pork at Whole Foods and you have made the connection). It's called "Modern Meat" and though dated, it provides a certain insight into the meat business that most people are not aware of.....it'll scare the the hell out of you!!(though I will still go for the dry-aged prime every time...)

Since we are recomending books,

One of my all time favorite books is "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" by Kentucky native Barbara Kingsolver. A really easy, enjoyable read it is very focused on the "food miles" side of the food equation. Very educational on all the facts, but you kind of forget so 'cause the story is so great (and so are the recipes). It really changed the way I think about some things: I'll never give up lemons from Florida, or my incredible Italian Olive oils, lbut I've been alot more cognisant of where my food comes from and how to support changing our food economy.

I HIGHLY recommend it!

Deb

Since we are recomending books,

One of my all time favorite books is "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" by Kentucky native Barbara Kingsolver. A really easy, enjoyable read it is very focused on the "food miles" side of the food equation. Very educational on all the facts, but you kind of forget so 'cause the story is so great (and so are the recipes). It really changed the way I think about some things: I'll never give up lemons from Florida, or my incredible Italian Olive oils, lbut I've been alot more cognisant of where my food comes from and how to support changing our food economy.

I HIGHLY recommend it!

Deb

Oh, cool. I'll definitely check that one out. I love her books. I don't know how I missed that one.

Sorry robin,
I meant grass fed.... I guess grain fed is "engrained" in my head
No pun intended.

Tina,

It's non-fiction: all about her family trying to live off of local food for a year. A suggestion: You'll want to buy a copy. I've already re-read the copy I got for my birth in June and loaned it to several friends. I will definitely be reading it (and using the recipes) again and again.

Let me know how you like it.

Deb