WHAT'S YOUR BEEF?

AUTHOR'S NOTE - All of the premises presented in this series of posts are solely based on personal experience as a livestock producer and strictly as a cattleman (I have a basic understanding of farm commodities markets, but no real experience with such, and cannot speak with much authority from the farm side of things; Though I would think there are going to be some similarities). The information represents my opinion and is based on personal experiences. Any factual information may or may not be referenced, but be aware, the majority of the content is personal conjecture. Dialogue and comment are welcome.


“Don’t Sell the Steak—Sell the Sizzle!" (Elmer Wheeler; "Trusted Sentences that Sell", 1937)

"Oh, the power of marketing". We have all heard that said, but, just what is Marketing? Well, the answer is based on who is being asked.


- Marketing is an organizational function and a set of processes for creating, communicating, and delivering value to customers and for managing customer relationships in ways that benefit the organization and its stakeholders.” (Small Business Branding)

- Marketing is based on thinking about the business in terms of customer needs and their satisfaction. (Business Dictionary)

I see the practice in very simple terms: Marketing is about exchanging value through the use of "half-truths".

EXAMPLE: "The" customer is health conscious and knows "whole grain" bread is better for them, so:
Marketing is a loaf of bread label that says "made with whole grains" and has the                   American Heart Association seal of approval. Sounds healthy, right(?)...until you read the ingredients and see it is made with high fructose corn syrup, dextrose, and a load of preservatives.


In essence, our food industry markets or advertises what the consumer wants to see or hear.  They "market" half of the truth....the whole truth is right there on the label as well...in "itty bitty" small print.

http://www.angus.org/

Which, brings me to the selling of beef and the marketing juggernaut known as "Certified Angus Beef" or CAB for short.

Now, traditionally, beef has been sold in steakhouses and supermarkets based on USDA grading (Prime, Choice, Select, etc.); however, many restaurants and retailers have recently begun advertising beef on the strength of brand names and the reputation of a specific breed of cattle.

The American Angus Association set up the "certified Angus Beef" brand in 1978. The goal of this brand is to promote the idea that Angus beef is of higher quality than beef from other breeds of cattle. Cattle that are at least 51% black and exhibit Angus-type characteristics are eligible for "Certified Angus Beef" evaluation.

Before the advent of the Certified Angus Beef brand, beef was just, well, beef. The commodity was bought and sold, based on grade with little, if any, preference to breed. Branding was the sole province of the Swift, Armour, and Stanko meatpacking companies.

The CAB concept was revolutionary and changed everything. The American Angus Association took their message straight to the consumer and then "partnered" with the meatpackers to create the image that angus beef actually tasted better than other breeds. Today, Certified Angus Beef is the world’s largest branded beef program, commanding an eye popping 60% market share.

THE HALF-TRUTH
Wow! When the consumer buys a package of beef with the CAB label, they are getting pure angus meat, right? Originally that was true, but today, certified angus beef comes from an animal that has just 1/8 angus in its bloodline or breeding. It doesnt come from pure bred angus cattle... just an animal that has angus somewhere in its breeding. If certified angus beef came from 100% angus cattle there would not be enough to supply the demand, thats why it comes from an animal that is known to have angus in its breeding. Clever, huh(!)?

THE TRUTH
In the United States, the USDA operates a voluntary beef grading program. The meat processor pays for a trained USDA meat grader to grade whole carcasses at the abattoir. The grades are based on two main criteria: the degree of marbling (intramuscular fat) in the beef rib eye (at the 12th rib cross-section), and the age of the animal prior to slaughter. Most beef offered for sale in supermarkets and most restaurants is graded choice or select. Less than 3% of all beef gets the highest grade of Prime beef and the majority of that is sold to exclusive hotels and upscale restaurants.

The USDA Grade Inspector Does Not take into consideration what breed of cattle they are inspecting. In fact, they rarely know which breed they are grading!

So, kudos to the Angus Beef folks...masterful job of Selling the Sizzle! And, in all fairness, they do provide a quality product...but, so do the producers of non-Angus breeds.

POP QUIZ:
These two Ribeye Steaks are of equal grade...Can you tell which one is Certified Angus Beef? (Look closely for a clue in one of the pics)

FYI: USDA BEEF GRADES

USDA Prime — highest in intramuscular fat. (Currently, only three percent of the steaks sold are USDA certified Prime.)
Choice
Select — the leanest grade commonly sold
Standard
Commercial
Utility
Cutter
Canner
**Ground Beef is not Graded**


Sign That the Apocalypse is Upon Us:
The "Big Three" national hamburger chains, notorious buyers of the lowest quality beef, are now promoting (marketing) the addition of Angus Beef Hamburgers to their menus.

SHUT UP and EAT!

Time to Quit Complaining about Our Food and Do Some Healthy, Delicious Eating... Grab a Fork!


Grass Fed Burger Recipe
(From Cindy and Bob in Fort Worth)

Grass Fed burgers with red onions and mushrooms:
For two burgers:
 2 TBSP olive oil
 1/2 sweet red onion, sliced super thin
 1 portobello mushroom 1/4 inch slices
 1/2 cup good red wine ( pinot noir, merlot…you choose)
 ground pepper (lightly)
 Pinch of sea salt ( add after wine or mushrooms)
 
  Heat saute pan, add cool oil, when heated, saute
  onions 2-3 minutes. 

  Add mushrooms, cook additional 2 minutes. Add wine,
  pepper and salt to taste.
  Cook until wine is reduced.

  Ladle over Beef patty, on split grilled Kaiser roll.

 Cowboy Beef and Black Bean Chili. 
(Takes about 2 hours to prepare)

Ingredients:
2 pounds Grass-Fed ground beef
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1-1/2 cups chopped onions
2 tablespoons minced garlic
2 medium yellow bell peppers, chopped
1 large jalapeño pepper, seeded, finely chopped
1/4 cup chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves, crushed
1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves, crushed
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
1 can (28 ounces) crushed tomatoes, undrained
1 can (14-1/2 ounces) chili-seasoned or zesty-style diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can (14 ounces) ready-to-serve beef broth
12 ounces dark beer
1/3 cup tomato paste
1 tablespoon honey
2 cans (15 ounces each) black beans, rinsed, drained
Chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
Instructions:
1. Brown ground beef in stockpot over medium heat 8 to10 minutes or until beef is no longer pink, breaking up into 3/4-inch crumbles. Remove from stockpot with slotted spoon. Set aside. Pour off drippings.
2. Heat oil in same stockpot over medium heat until hot. Add onions and garlic; cook and stir 3 to 5 minutes or until onions are tender. Add bell peppers and jalapeño; cook and stir 4 to 5 minutes or until peppers are tender.
3. Return beef crumbles to stockpot. Add chili powder, cumin, oregano, thyme and red pepper; cook and stir for 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes, broth, beer, tomato paste and honey; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 45 minutes. Uncover stockpot; continue simmering 30 minutes or until thickened to desired consistency, stirring occasionally. Stir in beans; cook 5 to 10 minutes or until beans are heated through. Season with salt and black pepper, as desired. Garnish with cilantro, if desired.
Makes 8 servings.

TEXAS SALSA MEATLOAF
Ingredients
2 lbs. Grass-fed ground beef
¾ c. Italian seasoned bread crumbs
1 egg
1 tsp. kosher salt
½ tsp. black pepper
½ tsp. ground cumin
¾ c. salsa (your preference)
Directions:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
Combine all ingredients by hand, mixing very thoroughly. If mixture seems too dry or crumbly, add more salsa to increase moisture.
Shape mixture into a loaf and place in glass baking pan. There should be no need for a loaf pan here, although you can use one if you’re a strict traditionalist.
Bake for approximately 90 minutes, until internal temperature reaches 160 degrees. Allow to rest for 20 minutes before carving.
Glaze (optional)
½ c. catsup
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
½ tsp. Tabasco (or other hot sauce)
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 ½ tbsp. Honey
Mix all ingredients together and baste loaf every 15 minutes after the first 10 minutes of cooking. Serve with extra glaze on the side for dipping and drizzling.

HOPE Y'all Enjoy!
 

I'd Like to Buy the World A...Glucose Meter

The 1971 Soda Pop commercial filled our hearts with love and made the makers of diabetic supplies rich.

So, what are you drinking right now? Did you know that recent studies show that the average person drinks 50 gallons of soda a year? That is a little more than 533 twelve ounce cans per year and comes out to a daily average of nearly 18 ounces per day. Soft drinks are one of the largest single sources of calories in the diet of every American accounting for up to 7 percent and for teenagers, even higher at approximately 13%. What does this mean? To put into perspective, these numbers reflect roughly 60,000 EMPTY calories per year...calories that provide little or no nutritional value, but are often stored as sugars in our bodies.

Soda is one of the largest contributors of caloric intake in society today. As we all know, extra calories mean extra weight and that leads to health problems. Problems related to the heart, tooth decay, and Type 2 Diabetes (formerly called "Adult Onset").

OK, so nobody ever said that soft drinks were a health food. But a highly debated 2004 Harvard study concluded that in addition to the bad things we already know about sodas, they may be directly contributing to the nation's increase in diabetes. Since 1980, the incidence of type-2 diabetes has more than doubled  according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and now represents about 6% of the total population. AND,  about the majority of that increase has come in just the last 10 years.

No one is saying that our thirst for the carbonated "sugar shots" are the sole cause of the nation's growing number of jello butts and spare tire bellies. But, it is hard not to correlate the huge increase in diabetic incidence to the rise in obesity.

The bottom line here is that you need to analyze everything you eat and drink. You do not have to give up sodas entirely, but enjoy them responsibly and save them as a rare treat...as they were originally intended.

SOME EXTRA INFO ON SODAS, OBESITY, and DIABETES:
Diet Sodas Linked with Health Risks  

Zero calories, same great taste (and heart risks)

And a Companion Piece from the Wellness Tips Blog
Diet Intervention for Overweight and Obese Kids 
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CORN - The GOOD, The BAD, The UGLY

Corn…Just the thought of it makes my taste buds tingle. Eating fresh roasted corn on the cob, (swimming in butter!) is one of my most vivid childhood memories. I used to accompany my grandfather (a “black land” farmer in central Texas) to pick those golden ears of corn, right from the cornstalk. I still love a roasted ear of corn. But, in the current health climate, corn stirs many to thoughts of villainy and hatred. So, I have decided to pull down my sombrero and throw my serape over my shoulder as we take a look at the “The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly” surrounding corn. (Hopefully, there are a few Clint Eastwood fans out there)

THE GOOD

Corn, in its natural form, actually has a lot of nutritional as well as health benefits.

For starters, it is high in fiber which fosters lower cholesterol and is beneficial to a healthy colon thus, helping to fight colon cancer. That golden ear is also rich in folate, providing  B12 and B6 vitamin compounds, integral to the generation of new cells, a big deal before and during pregnancy. Eating moderate amounts of corn has shown to be helpul in the treatment of diabetes, renal dysfunction, constipation, and hemorrhoids.
Also, it contains beta-cryptoxanthin, which helps promote healthy lungs and may even assist in the prevention of lung cancer…

THE BAD

As we have learned, corn, in and of itself can be very beneficial. The “bad” is how the crop has invaded nearly every part of our life through the use of its many chemical properties…or, actually, the chemical change of the inherent properties.

“Big Ag” is synonymous with large scale food production. In the last 50+ years, chemists have discovered literally hundreds of uses for the chemical compounds found in corn and few of them are healthy for us. We have already learned that our meat industry relies heavily on corn as a quick fattening feed for livestock and that a diet of corn is unhealthy for the animal and thus, humans. It doesn’t stop there. High fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is used in nearly any packaged or processed food product you can name. But, it doesn't stop there. As an example, let’s grab a cheeseburger, fries, and a soda…remember, every ingredient listed has some form of corn in it:

THE BUN: HFCS, WHEAT GLUTEN, MONOGLYCERIDES, CALCIUM STEAROYL LACTYLATE, CALCIUM SULFATE, ASCORBIC ACID, CALCIUM PROPIONATE (PRESERVATIVE)

THE CHEESE: HFCS, MONOGLYCERIDES, CALCIUM STEAROYL LACTYLATE, CALCIUM SULFATE, ASCORBIC ACID

THE MEAT: GRAIN FED, IRRIDATED, and possibly treated with a variation of CHLORINE

THE FRIES: HFCS, not to mention the oil used in deep frying

THE SODA: HFCS, DEXTROSE, CARAMEL COLORING, SACCHARIN, GLUCOSE  

Nearly every one of these products, especially HFCS have shown the potential for causing severe health risks in laboratory testing. 

THE UGLY

Where to begin? Let’s start with corn seed. Over the past 20 years, corn has become a genetically modified and engineered crop. The largest producer of GE seed is the Monsanto Company with an estimated 90% market share. Genetically Engineered seeds are resistant to bugs and various crop diseases. While it is true that these advances in seed genetics have radically boosted harvest yields, it is the murky veil of secrecy and heavy handed tactics they use for corporate protection that are disturbing.

The non-profit Center for Food Safety listed 112 lawsuits by Monsanto against farmers for claims of seed patent violations.. The Center for Food Safety's analyst stated that many innocent farmers settle with Monsanto because they cannot afford a time consuming lawsuit. Monsanto is frequently described by farmers as "Gestapo" and "Mafia" both because of these lawsuits and because of the questionable means they use to collect evidence of patent infringement.

As of May 2008, Monsanto is currently engaged in a campaign to prohibit dairies, which do not inject their cows with artificial bovine growth hormone from advertising this fact on their milk cartons.

When the Federal Trade Commission did not side with Monsanto on this issue, the company started lobbying state lawmakers to implement a similar ban. Pennsylvania Agriculture Secretary Dennis Wolfe attempted to prohibit dairies from using labels stating that their milk does not contain artificial bovine growth hormone, but public outcry led the Governor to step in and reverse his secretary's position, stating: "The public has a right to complete information about how the milk they buy is produced”. (SOURCE)

Monsanto has also been loathe to release the results of their ongoing lab studies on their products, saying only that both their seeds and the previously owned ARTIFICIAL BOVINE GROWTH HORMONE (rBGH) pose no risk in the food chain. However, independent research is beginning to show that genetically modified corn may be a leading cause of organ damage. (Huffington Post)

In closing, It is clear that an ear of corn has numerous nutritional as well as potential health benefits; that making chemical changes can be unhealthy; and that owning the monopoly on a product can lead to deceit and corruption.

Monsanto and the food giants should heed the warning made famous in a TV advertisement for one of

THEIR first corn by-products: “It’s not nice to fool Mother Nature!”

BUYING LOCAL IS THE "DIFFERENCE"

Back in July of 2009, a major study comparing the nutritional value of organic food to conventional food was published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. The study conclusion was that organic food, was “no healthier” than ordinary food. They also decided there were "no significant differences in nutrient content,” and "there is currently no evidence to support the selection of organic over conventionally produced foods on the basis of nutritional superiority."


Surprised? Don’t be. The real differences and reasons for eating organic are not wholly based on nutrition. You should actually consider the "who, what and where from" when selecting your food.

Sure, we instinctively know that organically grown food is better than conventionally grown, if only because it is free of potentially harmful chemical residue. But, for the sake of argument, lets accept the study findings at face value. The fact that produce or meat is organic doesn’t change the basic make-up of a food item. A rib eye steak, organic or not, is still beef and broccoli, despite the use of artificial pesticides or fertilizers, is still broccoli. The nutritional value of the food item is still inherent regardless of how it is grown.

The real issue is large scale or corporate farming.


The “Big Boys” have figured out that they can command a premium price for the organic label and now, most of the major corporate producers have either created or acquired an organic division. Up until the last fifteen or so years, organic produce and beef was a small niche market deemed worthy only to "health nuts" and "hippies". Anyone who wanted organic had to buy at specialty health food stores or visit a farmers market that featured locally grown organic crops and commodities. Now, because of growing public awareness that conventionally produced food may have certain health risks, everyone from Walmart to the large regional grocery chains carry organic food. Furthermore, these large retailers don’t get their organics from small, local farmers who take great pride in providing healthy and delicious tasting food. Instead, they buy from large industrial organic farms, many of which are owned by the same "name brands" that deliver the conventionally produced foods . These large scale organic farms aren’t concerned with growing the richest, best tasting products. What they want are products that meet organic certification, can be grown on a large scale, and survive mechanical harvesting. Because of the lead time required for shipping, organically produced foods (just as conventionally produced items) must be harvested before it is truly ripe, which causes it to decline in nutritional value.

Finally, and most importantly, is what society and civilization are losing because of the advent of large corporate farms…..the family farm. It’s a rich part of the American heritage and it is being pushed to the brink of extinction by corporate farm entities and big box food retailers. Local farms are operated by people dedicated to providing high quality foods. They are stewards of the land, that squeeze out a significant part of their income from local markets or direct sales. They pick the crop when it is ripe, ready to eat, and at its nutritional peak).

When you buy local, you are helping to keep a part of history alive while also rewarding a true craftsman for his or her work.