Author Topic: Organic 100% grass-fed beef from Uruguay?  (Read 24917 times)

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Offline Joy2012

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Organic 100% grass-fed beef from Uruguay?
« on: August 26, 2012, 11:34:54 am »
At a local Sprouts grocer I found "organic 100% grass-fed beef" from Uruguay.  I was told that the Uruguay beef has never been frozen and is vaccum-sealed and it takes only one day to transport it from Uruguay to my city Austin.   Does anyone know of any objections against beef from Uruguay?  It is less expensive than the grass-fed beef sold at my local Whole Foods stores. (WF said they get their beef from Texan farms.)   So if the Uruguay beef is good  I plan to buy at Sprouts instead of at WF from now on.

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Re: Organic 100% grass-fed beef from Uruguay?
« Reply #1 on: August 27, 2012, 05:26:31 am »
My mom's side grew up in Uruguay which is a grassfed beef/dairy paradise. Unfortunately cargill/monsanto are getting their treacherous claws in to the country the way they tend to do, but grass fed is still the rule there and grainfed the exception!

Beef is THE industry in uruguay and it is basically one big country of sprawling pasture. Google some fotos of uruguay cattle or uruguay beef to see the happy cows. So short answer, yes, enjoy, super high quality, but would be better if you were enjoying it there on the beach with the beautiful people of that country!

Offline Joy2012

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Re: Organic 100% grass-fed beef from Uruguay?
« Reply #2 on: August 27, 2012, 10:35:55 am »
Thank you, Thoth.

Offline Chris

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Re: Organic 100% grass-fed beef from Uruguay?
« Reply #3 on: August 27, 2012, 03:37:05 pm »
At a local Sprouts grocer I found "organic 100% grass-fed beef" from Uruguay.  I was told that the Uruguay beef has never been frozen and is vaccum-sealed and it takes only one day to transport it from Uruguay to my city Austin.   Does anyone know of any objections against beef from Uruguay?  It is less expensive than the grass-fed beef sold at my local Whole Foods stores. (WF said they get their beef from Texan farms.)   So if the Uruguay beef is good  I plan to buy at Sprouts instead of at WF from now on.
Hi Joy,
Your correct about it not being frozen and it's transit time. I've actually picked up some from Sprouts, and I have to say, it's some of the best Organic Grass Fed Beef I've had so far. Plus it's fresh! I like it much better than WF (which is not Organic BTW). I've talked with a few butchers from Sprouts, and they have informed me that it's pretty Lean (90/10) approx. So you may want to add a little more fat, if thats your preference. BTW have you noticed how much Redder and Fresher the meat looks? Excellent Quality!
« Last Edit: August 27, 2012, 03:42:46 pm by Chris »

Offline Joy2012

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Re: Organic 100% grass-fed beef from Uruguay?
« Reply #4 on: August 28, 2012, 12:15:13 am »
Chris, I tried the Sprouts Uruguay beef and like it. Thanks for confirming that it is good beef.

Offline Joy2012

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Re: Organic 100% grass-fed beef from Uruguay?
« Reply #5 on: August 28, 2012, 11:51:11 am »
I like it much better than WF (which is not Organic BTW).

Does anyone know what "organic" means in the case of beef?

CitrusHigh

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Re: Organic 100% grass-fed beef from Uruguay?
« Reply #6 on: August 28, 2012, 12:14:29 pm »
I'm guessing that Chris is referring to whole foods grass fed beef being simply grass fed but not certified organic grass fed.

What that 'should' mean is that the WF beef is raised with similar rearing protocols to organic grass fed, meaning no antibiotics, hormones, gmo feed, and not grain fed, but, since it is not certified organic, there is the option for them to do all of those things.

IOW, if you want to be sure that whole foods' beef is clean, then you would ask if the cattle get anything other than grass, water, and organic minerals. Cows should not be getting anything besides that. Get in the habit of asking detailed questions wherever you go when looking for food, you have to if you want to know about how your food was grown. Also it is good to re-check this every couple of weeks/months because things change, info can be unreliable and it's been more than once that I've used multiple rounds of questioning to ferret out meat that was previously thought to be raised properly only to find out it was fed soy, or grains, or blah blah bummer. It's your health, and you are worth the diligence in questioning!
« Last Edit: August 28, 2012, 12:28:05 pm by Thoth »

Offline Joy2012

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Re: Organic 100% grass-fed beef from Uruguay?
« Reply #7 on: August 29, 2012, 02:57:06 am »
organic grass fed, meaning no antibiotics, hormones, gmo feed, and not grain fed, but, since it is not certified organic, there is the option for them to do all of those things.

IOW, if you want to be sure that whole foods' beef is clean, then you would ask if the cattle get anything other than grass, water, and organic minerals.

So you think Sprouts "organic 100% grass-fed beef" from Uruguay is raised properly? I will just buy from Sprouts then.

Once I asked a saleswoman at a WF seafood department in NW Austin whether the Mexican Bay water from which their shrimps came was clean. She said (with no hint of politeness) that I needed to do my own research. I felt embarrassed by the way she responded to me. Another customer besides me told me that the water was very clean. His kindness saved me from my embarrassment because now somebody was talking to me. I wonder if she responded that way to me because I am Asian and she thought I didn't know the rights of a customer.. Or is it true that customers have to do their own research and have no right to ask questions?

CitrusHigh

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Re: Organic 100% grass-fed beef from Uruguay?
« Reply #8 on: August 29, 2012, 03:29:34 am »
Well, no one is going to care about you as much as you. So you can never RELY on the vendor to tell you the truth, or even give due diligence regarding safety. Most of the time they will stay inside of the law of the pertinent regulatory authorities and not much more. They're running a business and most of the time they either don't care, or they don't know that there is anything to care about, relying on what the government or scientists tell them, all of whom have their own agendas separate from public health. My point being, you certainly have the right to ask questions, and you should, ask a ton of them, politely but exhaustively, don't stop until you're satisfied. Then do your own research too and verify the claims they make. My butchers tell me grainfed is perfectly fine, but I know better because I understand the way these animals work and what that grain feeding does to the nutrient profile of the beef. By and large, industry is concerned with moving as much product as possible with the best profit margins possible while staying inside of the law. Very rare is the business that cares as much about quality as they do about their bottom line profits.

So ask them lots of questions, politely, and ignore their attitudes by persisting, be bold and realize that these people are kind of stupid and ignorant, not probably their fault, again, they probabaly don't know that there is something to 'know', and also do your own research and come ask questions here like you're doing if something is confusing. It takes years to change your paradigm and understand what truly makes nutritious food because we've been stupified for so long by our dumbing institutions and socialization.

Yes, I'd go with sprouts, because I personally know uruguay produces kickass beef, and it is certified organic, though the WF grassfed is PROBABLY passable, but unless you contact the farms they source from you don't really know. Enjoy the carne!

Offline Joy2012

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Re: Organic 100% grass-fed beef from Uruguay?
« Reply #9 on: August 29, 2012, 11:45:15 am »
Thank you Thoth for sharing your knowledge. I am enjoying Uruguay beef this evening. I did some google search on Uruguay and obtained some interesting facts of this nation.

I've talked with a few butchers from Sprouts, and they have informed me that it's pretty Lean (90/10) approx. So you may want to add a little more fat, if thats your preference.

Chris that depends on the beef cuts.  Some are very lean and some are fatty. Sprouts does not have every cut available on any given day. I guess they do not yet have as many customers for grass-fed beef as WF stores do.  When more people find out about their good Uruguay beef, maybe they will have more cuts available.

Offline Chris

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Re: Organic 100% grass-fed beef from Uruguay?
« Reply #10 on: August 30, 2012, 03:47:41 am »

Chris that depends on the beef cuts.  Some are very lean and some are fatty. Sprouts does not have every cut available on any given day. I guess they do not yet have as many customers for grass-fed beef as WF stores do.  When more people find out about their good Uruguay beef, maybe they will have more cuts available.
I was referring to the ground beef. I guess I should have clarified that, sorry. Your right they have a few different cuts to select from. I wish they had more. What can you do?

Offline Joy2012

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Re: Organic 100% grass-fed beef from Uruguay?
« Reply #11 on: August 30, 2012, 09:30:26 am »
I was referring to the ground beef. I guess I should have clarified that, sorry. Your right they have a few different cuts to select from. I wish they had more. What can you do?

Chris, I  do not buy ground beef. I buy cuts and grind/mince them in my food processor. I think it is safer that way.  The butchers may use harsh chemicals to clean their machines...and who knows if they clean the meat well before they grind it.
« Last Edit: August 30, 2012, 10:59:05 am by Joy2012 »

Offline eveheart

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Re: Organic 100% grass-fed beef from Uruguay?
« Reply #12 on: October 29, 2012, 01:21:45 am »
I bought a rump roast from Sprouts that was labeled "grass-fed" from Uruguay. It was about 3 pounds of trimmed meat, which is different from the untrimmed rump portions I buy from my usual butcher. I mention this because the untrimmed fat is a clue that the meat is grass-fed, since grain-fed beef fat is white/gray and grass-fed beef fat is yellowish.

As I slice the Uruguayan roast, I can't help noticing that the muscle is very well marbled. I have never seen grass-fed beef with fat-marbling in the muscle mass. I called the meat manager, who told me that some of their grass-fed beef comes in marbled like that because the beef build up fat in their muscle from walking.

Is this believable?
"I intend to live forever; so far, so good." -Steven Wright, comedian

Offline Wattlebird

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Re: Organic 100% grass-fed beef from Uruguay?
« Reply #13 on: October 29, 2012, 04:55:34 am »
I bought a rump roast from Sprouts that was labeled "grass-fed" from Uruguay. It was about 3 pounds of trimmed meat, which is different from the untrimmed rump portions I buy from my usual butcher. I mention this because the untrimmed fat is a clue that the meat is grass-fed, since grain-fed beef fat is white/gray and grass-fed beef fat is yellowish.

As I slice the Uruguayan roast, I can't help noticing that the muscle is very well marbled. I have never seen grass-fed beef with fat-marbling in the muscle mass. I called the meat manager, who told me that some of their grass-fed beef comes in marbled like that because the beef build up fat in their muscle from walking.

Is this believable?

Hi Eveheart,
in my opinion, this is doubtful, but I could be wrong.
Marbling generally seems to occur by animal inactivity - as in feedlots - as opposed to walking around in paddocks.
I cant remember ever seeing a heavily marbled pure grass fed animal that roams to graze and feed.
Kind wishes, J

Offline aLptHW4k4y

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Re: Organic 100% grass-fed beef from Uruguay?
« Reply #14 on: October 29, 2012, 05:29:21 am »
I called the meat manager, who told me that some of their grass-fed beef comes in marbled like that because the beef build up fat in their muscle from walking.
Haha, I thought walking is the best way to lose fat, so something definitely doesn't fit here.. :)

Offline Joy2012

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Re: Organic 100% grass-fed beef from Uruguay?
« Reply #15 on: October 29, 2012, 07:50:41 am »
So Sprouts' 100% grass-fed beef is not genuinely 100% grass-fed?

Offline eveheart

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Re: Organic 100% grass-fed beef from Uruguay?
« Reply #16 on: October 29, 2012, 12:04:31 pm »
So Sprouts' 100% grass-fed beef is not genuinely 100% grass-fed?

Nobody has made that accusation... yet. I wrote to Sprouts corporate for clarification beyond the ridiculous statement made by the local meat manager.

I read this on another site:
Quote
None of the three South American countries have significant grain-finishing systems for cattle. In some cases, particularly Argentina and Uruguay, small amounts of corn are fed in short-duration “hybrid” finishing systems to boost gain and quality in the final phases of pasture growth. http://beefmagazine.com/mag/beef_looming_large
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Offline Joy2012

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Re: Organic 100% grass-fed beef from Uruguay?
« Reply #17 on: October 30, 2012, 08:14:09 am »
Do share Sprouts' reply. Thanks.

Offline eveheart

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Re: Organic 100% grass-fed beef from Uruguay?
« Reply #18 on: November 01, 2012, 08:02:09 am »
I spoke to a Mr. Swanson from Sprouts, who says he is the one who selected the Uruguayan beef that is featured at Sprouts.

He said that he selected this beef for its mild flavor profile and marbling because it is what Sprouts customers enjoy. The marbling comes from the rich fescue/clover/alfalfa mix of the grass on The Pampas. In particular, in the season when the alfalfa heads up (forms seeds), the seed increases the protein content of the grass, causing the cattle to have fattier muscle. He says that grassfed beef from the US typically has a "iron-y" flavor, so it tastes stronger, which is something that Sprouts customers are not used to.

I do not dispute what he said. Personally, I thought the meat had too little taste for my palate.
"I intend to live forever; so far, so good." -Steven Wright, comedian

Offline Chris

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Re: Organic 100% grass-fed beef from Uruguay?
« Reply #19 on: November 01, 2012, 08:32:28 am »
Personally, I thought the meat had too little taste for my palate.

I agree with you on that regard! I thought the meat was rather bland too. I think it's because there is a lack of fat. I asked the Butcher over at Sprouts about the content of fat in the meat, and he told me it was very lean (90/10). I think it's good quality, but I stay away from it due to the lack of fat in the meat. I found a much better source.  :)

Offline Joy2012

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Re: Organic 100% grass-fed beef from Uruguay?
« Reply #20 on: November 01, 2012, 09:58:47 am »
Thanks for the information. So it looks like Sprouts beef is indeed 100% grass-fed.

Offline Angus

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Re: Organic 100% grass-fed beef from Uruguay?
« Reply #21 on: November 01, 2013, 02:11:19 am »
Most of the forage-finished beef cattle produced in Argentina are fed on pastures of cultivated sorghum or alfalfa and are supplemented with corn.  They are a lot leaner and eat a lot less corn than the beef cattle from feedlots in the United States, but they would not meet the strict American Grassfed Association definition of "grassfed".  Beef from Uraguay is probably finished the same way, supplemented with varying amounts of corn.  Corn has been a staple food in the pre-Columbian Americas for close to 10,000 years.  I doubt anyone in South America is concerned, or is checking to see whether their beef has been fed corn, or not.

Look at the beef.  Grassfed beef will be a darker color, more burgandy than red, and the fat will be yellow, not white.  If the beef has a lot of marbling, odds are it was finished with corn.  The only way to be sure that your beef is grassfed is to ask the rancher if they are raising their beef according to American Grassfed Association standards for "grassfed".
 
http://mbfc.s3.amazonaws.com/2007_projects_&_technical_info_page/argentina_may_31_09_low_res_8x11.pdf

Offline TylerDurden

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Re: Organic 100% grass-fed beef from Uruguay?
« Reply #22 on: November 01, 2013, 05:21:08 am »
Hmm, I did once read a newspaper article boasting about how argentina and uruguay had mostly  grassfed cattle and that was why they were not getting all those CJD epidemics etc.
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