Research on Grassfed Beef - Pathfinders RC&D

Farming with grass – for people, for profit, for protection. Steiner and Franzleubbers. Journal of Soil and Water Conservation. This article highlights the changes in agricultural production as it relations to grazing animals.

Research by the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service/Grazinglands Research Laboratory on food animal production; water availability and water management; climate change, soils, and emissions; pasture, forage and rangeland systems; and agricultural system competitiveness and sustainability.

Can Responsible Grazing Make Beef Climate-Neutral? New research found that the greenhouse gases sequestered in one grass-fed system balanced out those emitted by the cows, but some meatless advocates are skeptical.

Impacts of soil carbon sequestration on life cycle greenhouse gas emissions in Midwestern USA beef finishing systems This study, published in Agricultural Systems, examines the carbon output and sequestration of feedlot produced cattle and multi-paddock grazed cattle.

Soil, Carbon, and Organic Farming. The Soil Association. This summary report discusses the implications of grass-fed animal production on climate change. Pastures planted in grass for grazing help with the carbon sequestration in soil, and may off-set the methane produced from the grazing animals.

Tackling Climate Change through Livestock. FAO The beef industry has the difficult challenge of having to reduce its GHG emissions while responding to a significant demand growth for livestock products (projected to be +70 percent between 2005 and 2050), driven by a growing world population (9.6 billion by 2050), rising affluence and urbanization (from the report). Carbon sequestration from grazing is a factor to consider as part of climate change mitigation, but carbon and methane emissions may also be mitigated with in-system efficiency improvements.

Understanding Factors Effecting Meat Quality. Powerpoint by Susan K. Duckett. This powerpoint compares the contents and nutrition factors of several different types of meat, including grass-fed beef. It coincides with the author’s research study on the effects of winter stocker growth rate and finish system on: tissue proximate, fatty acid, vitamin, and cholesterol content. Compared to meat that was finished on corn silage, pasture finished meat had higher concentrations of B-vitamins, thiamine and riboflavin, and 42.5% less total lipid content (lipids make up fats). The ratio of n-6 to n-3 fatty acids was 4.84 for corn silage finishing and 1.65 for pasture finished (from the research article). Health professionals recommend the consumption of diets with an n-6 to n-3 ratio of 4:1 or less (from the research article).