Grass Fed

It's important to keep this and similar articles in perspective. The case for animal rights and veganism does not depend on grass-fed claims being true or false. We publish this article because we believe many of the claims to be false or questionable, and such claims may deter some from even exploring animal rights and veganism.'

Introduction

Animal products packaged with a grass-fed label are often thought to represent a better life for animals, a smaller footprint for our planet, and a healthier alternative for human consumption. But as shown below, any claims for animal welfare are meaningless for the generic label and unencompassing for the other label we examine. The claims for sustainability and better health are highly questionable for both labels even if the ruminants were mostly grass-fed.

The reason the claims are meaningless for any generic labeling is that in 2016 the USDA stopped regulating the label, allowing producers to use the label no matter how much or little grass was used in feeding. And given that "most all beef cattle spend at least a portion of their lives on grass,", the notion that the grass-fed claim confers something special is questionable.

The private ''American Grass Fed'' seal also makes dubious claims. This standard requires inspections every 15 months, but the standards do not require the inspections be unannounced—a key provision for meaningful audits. Records of inspections are not public, so we do not know if there are violations, how they are handled, or if penalities have been levied. More specific claims for this label are discussed below.

Animal Welfare Claims

Generic Label

Some may suppose that a grass-fed label infers a better life for ruminants because they are eating their natural diet and doing so in roomy pastures. This is true only to the extent they are fed grass and the extent to which they are spending time in commodious pastures, neither of which are conferred by this unregulated label. Also, being feed grass does not necessarily mean their feeding is done in pastures.

In addition, the label says nothing about other injustices the animals may experience. It had few implications for animal welfare even before the USDA dropped enforcement in 2016, , as it didn't prohibit any cruelties such as dehorning and castration with anesthesia, harsh living conditions, rough handling, lack of veterinary care, and, of course, slaughter. The designation had only to do with feeding. Now that the label is not regulated it remains meaningless for animal welfare.

American Grass Fed

The standards for this private certification include sometimes vaguely worded stipulations on animal welfare that would provide a marginally better life for animals if the standards were strictly interpreted and enforced.

As one example of this vagueness, the standard says that "all livestock production methods and management must promote animal health, safety and welfare..." Without explict prohibitions on the mutilations mentioned earlier, and in light of the pressures of production and profit. it seems unlikely that producers would incur the costs involved.

And of course, the animals are deprived of their lives and must endure the violence of slaughter at an early age.

Sustainability Claims

The notion that a grass-fed livestock economy is sustainable is based on ideas known as regenerative grazing and holistic land management. In our article on grazing we show the claims have little scientific foundation.

Perhaps most damaging to the idea of sustainability is the realization that we simply don't have enough land. A 2018 Harvard study concluded that in the US has enough pasture to support only 27% of the current beef production."

The same study concluded that "a switch to purely grass-fed systems would likely result in higher environmental costs, including a 43% increase in methane emissions" which the EPA says have 28 to 36 times more global warming potential than carbon.

Even Beef Magazine, "the beef cattle industry’s authoritative source," says that "the grain-fed model actually has the smallest footprint."

Human Health Claims

There are studies that show grass-fed beef has higher levels of some nutrients, but keep in mind, as detailed above, there is no standard definition of grass-fed. So the cattle may have eaten only a small percentage of grass in relation to their total diet.

One study from Texas A&M reported that "there is no scientific evidence to support the claims that ground beef from grass-fed cattle is a healthier alternative to ground beef from conventionally raised, grain-fed cattle.