Hi I’m Mike, and today we begin the process
of finishing steers for eventual sale of beef to our customers, also we take a look at the
debate between grass fed and grain finished beef , on Our Wyoming Life. If this is your first time here please subscribe
to become member of the ranch, we post videos about ranching, farming, gardening, farmers
market, ranch style cooking and whole lot more, so just hit that subscribe button and
the bell and make sure you don’t miss a thing. I promised the kids that I would show you
guys the new boots they got me for Christmas, a lot of of you have asked about my boots
and here is the scoop. These new boots are from Ariat’s farm and
ranch line of boots, the only kind of boots I wear, and I’ve tried lots of boots. Almost every year I get a new pair of boots
and now I only choose Ariat, they fit me right and they last forever, and after wearing them
all day, they are the only boots that I can take off and not leave my feet aching. Today, we have to get these brand-new boots
dirty, as we start graining the steers, the grass-fed steers. But wait, cows can’t be grass fed and grain
fed, that doesn’t make sense. Marketing lately has us believing that there
is grass fed beef and grain fed beef and the differences between the two are astronomical,
but is all the hype true? What’s the difference and is one better
than the other? I’ll try to shed some light on the subject
as head out to move some cows around, up until now the older steers, the younger steer calves,
and the replacement heifers have all been living together in one corral, but now its
time to separate off the older steers so that we can start finishing them. To get beef from the pasture to your plate,
cattle undergo a finishing process and since World War I, calves have been sold and sent
to feedlots to be finished to ideal slaughter size and weight. Here on the ranch we keep a few steers back
each year to do just that on a much smaller scale, ending up with a richer flavor beef
and more tenderness associated with grain finished beef. You can’t start talking about finishing
beef without getting into the grass fed or grain finished beef debate. In reality, all cattle, are grazed on pasture
at some point in their lives and are grass fed. Meat labeled as grass fed beef means that
it has only eaten grass or hay from the time it was weaned from its mom, grass fed beef
is usually more expensive because it is done on a smaller scale and there has been a lot
of debate over which type of beef, grass fed or grain fed, is more nutritious. Grass fed beef has more omega -3 fatty acids,
while grain fed beef has more oleic acid with less saturated and trans fats. Both types of fats are considered good fats
and a study from Texas A&M found that the impact of eating both kinds of meat on cholesterol
is the same if the fat content of the meat is similar. Many sources have also noted that grass fed
beef contains more Vitamin A&E than grain fed beef, but in reality, neither type provides
enough of this vitamin to really make a difference in your diet, you’d be much better to eat
a carrot. The final component that has been discussed
is Antioxidants and Beta carotene, which grass fed beef has been shown to be higher in these
components, again though, not enough, you’d get more of antioxidants and beta carotene
from eating carrots, greens and blueberries. Much to Erin’s delight and stimulating her
sales from farmers market. So, all beef provides a nutrient rich protein,
providing your body with a critical resource. Research suggests, that higher protein intakes
may be good for your health, can help with weight management, preventing osteoporosis
and reducing your risk for cardiovascular disease. The big difference between grass fed and grain
fed beef is based on your taste or the price, that’s it. No matter what meat you eat, you can be confident
that your food is safe, nutritious and a healthful choice for you and your family. I know there are going to be people that ask
why we don’t just grass feed our beef, its a lot easier, you don’t have to feed them
grain everyday and track their intake and you can charge more money for it. Here on the ranch we take pride in giving
our customers the best product that we can produce and grain finishing provides the flavor
and the marbling that will produce a higher quality cut of meat. Marbling is intramuscular fat and as meat
cooks fat melts, making the cut of meat tender and moist and infuses it with meat flavor. As you can imagine, its difficult to get fat
by eating grass, which is why you’ve probably never seen a grass-fed beef that was graded
prime, despite the fact that grass fed beef is more expensive. Feeding our steers grain produces exactly
the kind of beef that we wish to sell and the process starts right here in the corrals. We have seven steers in this corral, each
one weighs between 800-900 lbs and up until now they have been given hay to eat daily
along with a taste of grain every few days. Beginning today, their diet will be stepped
up and after they are separated they will begin getting an increasing amount of grain
per day, starting at just a few pounds apiece and over the next 60 days that ration will
be increases slowly until they are enjoying almost 30lbs of grain each per day. All this grain will cause them to gain weight,
and produce that marbling we talked about earlier. Sorting them off is easy enough, hopefully. We just need to keep them in one corral while
we move the rest of the calves into another corral. Slow and steady wins the race here as we practice
low stress cattle handling techniques and let the cows take the lead, moving themselves
to an environment that they feel more comfortable in. Years ago when we first came to the ranch,
it might have taken me an hour to sort these cows, but the more you work with cattle, the
more you become in sync with them, you get used to the way they move and their body language. And when dealing with animal that weighs 4
times more than me, I’m going to let them make the rules. No rush and no pressure. Eventually, we get them sorted off and moved
back into their own new corral, where they have hay and water waiting for them, along
with their first taste of extravagance in their new life. Corn, Oats and Barley, a combination we call
COB. Finishing our own beef allows us to know exactly
what goes into each steer, we use no antibiotics and no growth hormones. They receive all-natural food and are raised
with enough room to move around and be comfortable. They have shelter from the weather and always
have clean fresh water available to them. We respect all of our animals, because without
them, there is no ranch. The grass-fed vs grain fed beef debate I’m
sure will continue, probably long after any of us have the teeth to chew through a steak
anyway, but the truth is that some people prefer grass fed and some prefer grain fed. For me it all comes down to taste, I’ve
tried both and grain fed beef provides the tenderness and the flavor that I have grown
to love. There’s also something to be said about
raising your own food. Whether it’s a carrot, an orange or steak,
and if you can’t raise it yourself, do me a favor and visit your local farmers market,
support those that do raise your food. Talk to a farmer or a rancher and learn exactly
what goes into it, we can all look at a chicken mcnugget and pretend we don’t know what
it is, because it tastes so good, but you can know what you are eating, and get it from
the growers mouth, not the food….That would be weird, like a baby bird thing. You know what I mean. Come back later this week as we try to tackle
the project list again on Tuesday and I’m inviting you personally to come join Erin
and me Thursday night at 7pm mountain time for a live stream right here on YouTube, where
we will be answering questions from you and throwing in our own two cents as well. Please subscribe and comment, find us on Facebook
for content you cant find any where else and if you have already subscribed, thank you
very much for becoming part of our ranch. Have a great week, and thanks for joining
us in our Wyoming life.
