Did you ever wonder where the most delicious beef comes from? People can debate the answer to that question endlessly, so perhaps a better question is ‘How do you produce the most delicious beef?’
The short answer is that the animal must live and die well. But what does that mean?
I write about nutrition and wellness, and in most cases, it so happens that producing food to maximize nutrition will also maximize flavor (Clearly, this idea does not apply to Twinkies and the like). Let’s look at some of the key points.
Breed. This is a very subjective thing. Of course it can be argued that there are various objective factors that make one breed better than another for producing beef; however, regardless of the breed that you prefer, the factors that I discuss below are more important, and will apply to all breeds…
Think local. An animal or plant that is indigenous to an area has the best chance of maximizing and maintaining its wellness. Animals are more adaptive than plants in this regard; however, it is still a factor, as you are less likely to have problems with pests, parasites, diseases, etc., when you are in your native environment. Combine that with the optimized food sources of a native environment and you have reduced many stress factors significantly, as well as eliminated (or reduced) unwanted agrochemicals. Thus, those farms that do the best job at providing (or mimicking) a cow’s native environment will have the best chance of producing the most nutritious and delicious beef.
Soil / Land Management. Everything starts with the soil. Proper land management produces more nutritious grasslands and plants, which produce more robust animals. The best beef will come from cows that are raised on lush pastures under proper land management. Land (soil) needs time to recover its nutrients, and so the best farms know to move (or rotate) their cows to different pastures… very similar to what would happen in the wild.
Humane Treatment. A happy cow is a healthy cow. Don’t raise one cow by itself, or it will be lonely, and don’t crowd too many cows into small spaces. Let them roam free on sufficient green pastures, with fresh air and water, and enough space to feel free. The best farms genuinely care about the happiness of their cows, and know how to keep them happy.
Humane Slaughter. This is the most important point. First, let’s all agree that any kind of factory farming is a crime, and ‘slaughter houses’ are a horrible end to a horrible life at a CAFO or similar operation. You can find many definitions and marketing that use the term ‘humane slaughter’ and yet there is nothing humane about most of those practices. However, everything that lives, also dies, and so we can and should find a way to make death as peaceful and dignified as possible. Luckily, there are farmers that do just that. In the wild, death is a very violent experience for most prey animals, but on a farm it does not have to be that way. In addition to all the ethical reasons for providing a peaceful end, you must give the animal the post peaceful passing possible if you want the best tasting meat. To understand the science behind this, you can read the link below.
