Premium Grass-fed Reserve Beef

Genetics, diet, and animal welfare are the key components that affect eating quality. Certain breeds, like Black Angus, have naturally higher marbling, the intramuscular fat that contributes to flavor, tenderness and juiciness. What animals eat also affects flavor. Grass-fed, grass-finished beef is widely recognized to have more complex flavor. Animals that are pasture raised free range and that are never confined to crowded feedlots for fattening live a more natural, less stressful life. Stress contributes to toughness in meat. Confinement can contribute to a rise in pathogens that are often treated prophylactically with antibiotics. The world’s best beef comes from regions where a temperate climate permits year-round grazing on vast, lush pastures that benefit from plenty of rainfall, where there are strict animal welfare policies in place, and where antibiotics and growth hormones are highly regulated or restricted. Australia and New Zealand are two excellent examples. Look for wholesale beef brands like Silver Fern Farms Angus, Ocean Beef, Bass Strait Beef, and The Vintage Beef Company, all available through Marx Foodservice.

Silver Fern Farms is a co-op of small family farms. Many have been raising cattle for generations and they care passionately about the land. Grass-based farming is inherently more environmentally sustainable and less intensive than grain-based, feedlot or factory-farming systems. New Zealand’s low intensity grass-fed systems do not rely on imported feed, and their vast pastures allow cattle plenty of room to graze. This natural grass-fed approach requires farmers to match animals and farm systems to the capacity of the land, reducing any adverse effects on the environment.

Silver Fern Farms is a co-op of small family farms. Many have been raising cattle for generations and they care passionately about the land. Grass-based farming is inherently more environmentally sustainable and less intensive than grain-based, feedlot or factory-farming systems. New Zealand’s low intensity grass-fed systems do not rely on imported feed, and their vast pastures allow cattle plenty of room to graze. This natural grass-fed approach requires farmers to match animals and farm systems to the capacity of the land, reducing any adverse effects on the environment.