In order to achieve maximum weight gain in the shortest time possible with minimal cost, most factories resolve to an intensive cattle production method where thousands of cattle are confined in dirt feedlots and the main feeding diet is grain-based with hormones to contribute to faster growth rate. This method however raises a number of concerns including increased greenhouse gas emissions and unhealthy meat products. This has largely contributed to increased demand of products from grass-fed beef farms.
There are several disorders that can be associated to animal stress with the common one being subacute acidosis. The normal diet for cattle is pasture but in feedlots they are fed on grains. Animal stress is particularly caused by the change of diet from pasture to grain. In order to deal with these disorders, animals are normally given antibiotics and chemical additives resulting to meat full of chemicals. Overuse of medication is likely to result to new strains of bacteria. When these new strains of bacteria affect human, the medicine for treatment can be difficult to find.
The most important benefit of pasture fed cattle is the nutritional value associated with the resulting beef. The commonly sighted nutrition benefits include less saturated fat and total fat in general, less calories and less cholesterol. Vitamin C and vitamin E content is also higher. The same can be said of beta-carotene, omega-3 fatty acid and many other health promoting fats.
It cannot escape the eye of consumers that in feedlots, the animals are fed with supplements and hormones to promote faster growth. These are substances that are not completely safe for the consumer as they can have similar effects when they get into the body when still active.
Normally, raising thousands of cattle in feedlots where they are confined in concentrations and are shifted from natural grass diet to grains can results to stress. This stress can be the cause of a number of disorders including subacute acidosis that is very common and painful. In order to manage these conditions, cattle are given antibiotics and other chemical additives some of which are used by humans as medicines. When overused in feedlots, bacteria develop resistance and when these new strains of resistant bacteria infect humans, the medical options are few.
The statistics on the other hands tends to support farms feeding cattle on grass. The studies put the highest percentages of discovered cases of E. Coli and Listeria bacteria at about 58% in feedlots meat products with only 2% found on meat from cattle raised in open pasture. Other common bacterial diseases that is likely to be found in feedlot cattle products is campylobacter. These are serious infections that have led to recalls making headlines on newspapers.
The other issue is environmental degradation that is common with factory way of fattening cattle. Other than increased greenhouse gas emission, this method is responsible to high level of manure concentration over a very small portion of land. This has effect of increasing nutrients to the extent that the surrounding land and water is polluted.
According to the standards of Animal Welfare Approved husbandry practices, cattle must be raised as humanely as possible with natural living habitat so as to obtain safer meat for the consumers. This is well observed in grass farms for cattle feeding.
There are several disorders that can be associated to animal stress with the common one being subacute acidosis. The normal diet for cattle is pasture but in feedlots they are fed on grains. Animal stress is particularly caused by the change of diet from pasture to grain. In order to deal with these disorders, animals are normally given antibiotics and chemical additives resulting to meat full of chemicals. Overuse of medication is likely to result to new strains of bacteria. When these new strains of bacteria affect human, the medicine for treatment can be difficult to find.
The most important benefit of pasture fed cattle is the nutritional value associated with the resulting beef. The commonly sighted nutrition benefits include less saturated fat and total fat in general, less calories and less cholesterol. Vitamin C and vitamin E content is also higher. The same can be said of beta-carotene, omega-3 fatty acid and many other health promoting fats.
It cannot escape the eye of consumers that in feedlots, the animals are fed with supplements and hormones to promote faster growth. These are substances that are not completely safe for the consumer as they can have similar effects when they get into the body when still active.
Normally, raising thousands of cattle in feedlots where they are confined in concentrations and are shifted from natural grass diet to grains can results to stress. This stress can be the cause of a number of disorders including subacute acidosis that is very common and painful. In order to manage these conditions, cattle are given antibiotics and other chemical additives some of which are used by humans as medicines. When overused in feedlots, bacteria develop resistance and when these new strains of resistant bacteria infect humans, the medical options are few.
The statistics on the other hands tends to support farms feeding cattle on grass. The studies put the highest percentages of discovered cases of E. Coli and Listeria bacteria at about 58% in feedlots meat products with only 2% found on meat from cattle raised in open pasture. Other common bacterial diseases that is likely to be found in feedlot cattle products is campylobacter. These are serious infections that have led to recalls making headlines on newspapers.
The other issue is environmental degradation that is common with factory way of fattening cattle. Other than increased greenhouse gas emission, this method is responsible to high level of manure concentration over a very small portion of land. This has effect of increasing nutrients to the extent that the surrounding land and water is polluted.
According to the standards of Animal Welfare Approved husbandry practices, cattle must be raised as humanely as possible with natural living habitat so as to obtain safer meat for the consumers. This is well observed in grass farms for cattle feeding.
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