Life, Nutrition and Health: Nutrition Density of Grazed Beef

The US-based Bionutrient Institute has been running a multi-year project to define the nutritional density of beef and the factors that influence it. Nutrient density is the relative amount of nutrients per calorie, estimated by nutrition profiling methods. The institute aims to investigate crops from broccoli to beef, offering a standardised approach to nutritional quality assessment.

Previously, the nutritional density of beef would have been thought of as relatively fixed, which, of course, seems highly unlikely if we think about the knowledge of taste profiles and farming systems. However, there is now scientific evidence confirming suspicions that it is highly variable. Data on the nutritional quality of beef and its determinants are showing some very interesting results. There are numerous differences in the nutritional density of grass-fed or grain-fed beef on farm identified in the early stages of this study, which is pre-publication. 

Differences in nutritional content 

• Grass-fed, polyculture pastures produced beef richer in omega-3 fatty acids
• Grass-fed offer a lower omega-6:omega-3 ratio (linked to reduced inflammation), which is a key indicator of beef quality
• Improved calcium, iron, potassium and magnesium for beef grazing polycultures 
• Grain-fed beef (note, this is US-specific) showed some higher vitamin levels – likely due to consistent supplementation
• Grazing-based systems generally produced leaner carcases, with 18% less fat, serving sizes offer lower total fat, saturated fat, monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats, with total fatty acid content higher in grazed beef 

A consistent conclusion was that the increased diversity in plants available improved the Omega-3 content of the meat produced. 

This study has come from US data, but with the constant shifts in consumer demand, it is very likely to have a significant influence on food retailers in the UK and even moreso if similar research is replicated in the UK. Of course, we are already seeing advertisements for ‘grass-based’ or ‘native breed’ beef within the supply chain, but the question is: how transparent is the evidence of the actual improvement in nutrient density for the target customer? There is so much more to learn about nutrient density and the benefits of understanding it for human health nationally. Moreover, this presents a unique opportunity to market meat, potentially strengthening demand for the direct sale of meat boxes. 

As we see discussions on food quality and consumer habits change, the calls to produce nutrient-dense beef may significantly intensify. How we monitor these, whether this will enter the market as premium schemes or how this is taken up by food retailers, is something to watch closely in the coming years.