Grass Doesn't Mean Pasture in Proposed USDA Guidelines

July 28, 2006

Most animals raised for meat and milk are intensively confined in barren warehouses or on dusty feedlots and forced to subsist on unnatural diets laden with antibiotics and rendered animal parts. Yet, advertisements depicting cows and other animals happily grazing in lush, green pastures frequently mislead consumers about the grim realities of animal agribusiness—and what the industry feeds farm animals.

A growing number(1) of producers are choosing to eliminate drugs and slaughterhouse waste from their feed, instead raising grass-fed animals. To provide a verifiable federal standard, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Marketing Service has suggested guidelines for a "grass-fed" (or "forage-fed") marketing claim. Once codified in law, this standard would distinguish meat and milk from ruminants, such as cattle, sheep, goats and bison, from conventionally produced animal products.

Take Action Ask the USDA to require "grass-fed" animals to be raised on pasture.

Something Missing

The USDA Agricultural Marketing Service's proposed standard reads:

Grass (Forage) Fed—Grass (annual and perennial), forbs (legumes, brassicas), browse, forage, or stockpiled forages, and post-harvest crop residue without separated grain shall be at least 99 percent of the energy source for the lifetime of the ruminant specie [sic], with the exception of milk consumed prior to weaning. Routine mineral and vitamin supplementation may also be included in the feeding regimen.(2)

While the USDA should be commended for proposing that "grass-fed" animals be fed a diet that is at least 99 percent grass or forage, the proposed standard does not require that any of this feed come from pasture or be free of antibiotics and hormones.

Both of these omissions trouble members of the American Grassfed Association, whose president, Dr. Patricia Whisnant, recently stated, "We are pretty close to our customers, and their perception of grass-fed means animals that go from birth to harvest on pasture, not in a feedlot."(3)

Pasturing Means Better Animal and Human Health

Studies have shown that pastured cows, compared with cows in confinement, have better overall health. Pastured cows have improved reproductive performance, hoof health and somatic cell counts, and lower susceptibility to mastitis, bulk tank milk bacteria or environmental pathogens on teat ends.(4,5)

In one study, herds of lactating cows were evaluated for the type of daily outdoor access they were given and their risk of developing digital dermatitis, a skin disease that can cause lameness. The herds allowed daily access only to pastures had the lowest risk, compared to herds given daily access only to drylot areas and those denied daily access to both drylots and pastures.(6) According to that analysis, "high incidence of digital dermatitis could be prevented in 69% of dairy operations...if all herds allowed daily access only to pasture."(7) 

Pasture-based feeding is also better for human health. According to a recent study by the Union of Concerned Scientists, meat from cattle raised on pasture contains less total fat than meat from their conventionally-raised counterparts.(8) In addition, meat and milk products from animals raised on pasture contain higher levels of certain fats that may provide health benefits for consumers.(9)

According to Martin E. O'Connor, chief of the Standardization Branch of the USDA's Livestock and Seed Program, the agency "recognizes there are concerns about confinement"(10)  and admits that "the majority of people envision grass-fed as pasture-raised, and we will consider this."(11) 

What You Can Do

The USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service is accepting comments on its proposed standard for a "grass-fed" (or "forage-fed") marketing claim until August 10, 2006. Please take just a moment to submit comments. Make sure that "grass-fed" means the animals are pasture-raised and able to graze, rather than warehoused and fed drugs.

---

1Roosevelt M. 2006. The grass-fed revolution. Time, June 12. www.time.com/time/archive/preview/0,10987,1200759,00.html. Accessed July 25, 2006. 
2United States Standard for Livestock and Meat Marketing Claim, Grass (Forage) Fed Claim, Notice and request for comments, 71 Fed. Reg. 27662-27665 (May 12, 2006).
3Burros M. 2006. Grass-fed rule angers farmers. New York Times, July 26. www.nytimes.com/2006/07/26/dining/26grass.html. Accessed July 26, 2006.
4Washburn SP, White SL, Green Jr. JT, and Benson GA. 2002. Reproduction, mastitis, and body condition of seasonally calved Holstein and Jersey cows in confinement or pasture systems. Journal of Dairy Science 85:105-11.
5Goldberg JJ, Wildman EE, Pankey JW, Kunkel JR, Howard DE, and Murphy BM. 1992. The influence of intensively managed rotational grazing, traditional continuous grazing, and confinement housing on bulk tank milk quality and udder health. Journal of Dairy Science 75:96-104.
6Wells SJ, Garber LP, and Wagner BA. 1999. Papillomatous digital dermatitis and associated risk factors in US dairy herds. Preventive Veterinary Medicine 38:11-24. 
7Ibid. at 19.
8Clancy K. 2006. Greener Pastures: How grass-fed beef and milk contribute to healthy eating. Union of Concerned Scientists. www.ucsusa.org/assets/documents/food_and_environment/greener-pastures.pdf. Accessed July 25, 2006.
9Ibid.
10Burros M, op cit.
11Ibid.

See the Video

Factory Farms Slideshow

Related Links

Milking the System: Dairy Factories Profiting from USDA 'Organic' Certification

Capitol Hill Examines Farm Animal Abuses

A Pragmatic Primer for Making a Difference: The Way We Eat