Research Sustains Health Claims
US - A University of Wyoming beef expert says while some health claims associated with grass-fed beef are supported by the science, the economics can be a bit more problematic.Chris Bastian, assistant professor in the Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics, said research conducted at UW suggests such statements are valid.
At the same time, however, a Wyoming Lean Beef program launched in the 1980s failed for reasons largely unrelated to health benefits.
Bastian said one problem was keeping a consistent product, and keeping a product year-round, before consumers.
Grass also is somewhat less efficient in terms of weight gain. Bastian said UW research indicates a product deemed natural would need to command a 25 percent premium to make it pay relative to a traditional grain-fed product.
Grass-fed beef tends to have less intramuscular marbling than grain-fed, he added, which contributes to health attributes like less fat and cholesterol, but it also can mean a less tender product and meat some consumers find less flavorful than a grain-fed equivalent.
Source: Jackson Hole Star-Tribune