How to raise organic beef.
How to raise organic beef First of all, what is organic beef? Organic beef is beef that is raised without the use of any kind of chemicals or hormones, unlike conventionally raised cattle. Of course, if an animal were to get sick, you would definitely want to give it antibiotics, but then not sell it as an organically-raised product. Secondly, what is the difference in the way organic beef are fed as compared to non-organic? Organically raised cows are fed solely on organic feed. For outdoor grazing, organically raised steer eat only in organically grown pastures. There also Government guidelines that must be followed when raising organic beef for market. The cows must also be organically verified and raised by an organically certified farmer. Even though there are restrictions in feeding methods and overall certification practices, raising organic cattle has some advantages. For example, organically raised beef is considered to have a higher health value by the people who purchase and consume it, therefore it is priced higher. That means a bigger profit for the farmer. And although entering into the organic beef industry takes more effort than the conventionally raised cattle market, it is becoming more and more popular by the general public mostly due to healthy eating awareness. If you are seriously interested in raising organic beef, check out the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Marketing Service National Organic Program website at http://www.ams.usda.gov/nop/indexIE.htm to learn more about the certifications and where you will need to go to obtain them. There is also excellent information on the standards and guidelines you’ll need to follow as well as state-approved programs to help farmers receive financing.
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