Grain-fi nished■ Cattle spend most of their

lives grazing on pasture, then spend 4 – 6 months in a feedyard

■ Are free to eat an optimal, balanced diet of grasses, grains and other forages

■ May judiciously be given FDA-approved antibiotics or growth promotants

■ May be given vitamin and mineral supplements

■ Receive individual attention, access to clean water and room to roam

Grass-fi nished ■ Cattle spend their entire lives

grazing on pasture ■ May judiciously be given

FDA-approved antibiotics or growth promotants

■ May be given vitamin and mineral supplements

■ Canbedifficulttoproduceyear-round in North America due to changing seasons and weather conditions

Naturally raised ■ Cattlecanbegrain-finishedorgrass-finished—lookatthelabel for details

■ Have never received antibiotics or growth promotants

■ May be given vitamin and mineral supplements

■ MustbecertifiedbyUSDA’s Agricultural MarketingService3

Certifi ed organic ■ Cattlecanbegrain-finishedorgrass-finished,aslongasthefeed is 100% organic

■ Have never received antibiotics or growth promotants

■ May be given vitamin and mineral supplements

■ MustbecertifiedbyUSDA’s Agricultural MarketingService4

■ Lookfortheofficiallabel

BEEFnutrition.org Today’s Beef Choices

About 750,000 cattle farmers and ranchers raise cattle in every state in the country. They use the diverse resources available in their local areas to produce nutritious, safe and delicious beef. For Americans, that means there are a varietyofbeefchoicessuchasgrain-finished,grass-finished,

naturalandcertifiedorganicbeef.Fromthepasturetotheplate,theentirefoodchainworkstogethertoensurehigh-quality and healthy beef for Americans. So, no matter what you desire, there is a great beef choice for you.

Beef can be:

Cattle Grass

Grass-fi nished

Grain-fi nished

Grass-FedAll cattle spend a

majority of their lives eating grass on pastures

NaturalMost beef does not contain any additives and is not more than

minimally processed*,1,2

NutritiousBeef is a

powerful protein and an excellent or

good source of 10 essential nutrients

SafeVigilance on

farms, rigorous safety inspections

and strict government guidelines ensure the highest level of safety

All beef is:

*Thisdefinitiononlyappliestohowthemeatwasprocessedafterthecattlewereharvestedanddoesnotapplytohowtheanimalswereraised.EffortsareunderwaytocoordinateFSIS’regulationofnaturalclaimswiththeAMSvoluntary“naturallyraised”marketingclaimstandard.http://www.fsis.usda.gov/OPPDE/rdad/FRPubs/2006-0040A.htm.

© 2013, CATTLEMEN’S BEEF BOARD AND NATIONAL CATTLEMEN’S BEEF ASSOCIATION 18-253 031220

1 U.S.DepartmentofAgriculture,FoodSafetyandInspectionService.MeatandPoultryLabelingTerms.Availableat:http://www.fsis.usda.gov/FactSheets/Meat_&_Poultry_Labeling_Terms/index.asp. Accessed January 4, 2013.

2 “ProductLabeling:UseoftheVoluntaryClaim‘‘Natural’’intheLabelingofMeatandPoultryProducts.”FederalRegister74:176(14September2009)p.46951.Availableat: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2009-09-14/pdf/E9-22036.pdf.AccessedJanuary4,2013.

3 “UnitedStatesStandardsforLivestockandMeatMarketingClaims,NaturallyRaisedClaimforLivestockandtheMeatandMeatProductsDerivedFromSuchLivestock.”FederalRegister74:12(21January2009)p.3541.Availableat:http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2009-01-21/pdf/E9-1007.pdf.

4 U.S.DepartmentofAgriculture,AgriculturalMarketingService,NationalOrganicProgram.GuideforOrganicLivestockProducers.2012.Availableat: https://attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/download.php?id=154.AccessedJanuary4,2013.5 U.S.DepartmentofAgriculture,AgriculturalResearchService,USDANutrientDataLaboratory.USDANationalNutrientDatabaseforStandardReference,Release25.2012.Availableat: http://ndb.nal.usda.gov/.AccessedJanuary4,2013.6 FreshlookMarketingGroup,theleadingU.S.sourceofgroceryscannerdataformeatandproducepurchasing,52weeksending07/22/12.7 U.S.DepartmentofAgriculture,CenterforNutritionPolicyandPromotion.TipstoHelpYouMakeWiseChoicesfromtheProteinFoodsGroup.Availableat:

http://www.choosemyplate.gov/food-groups/protein-foods-tips.html.AccessedJanuary4,2013.8 DaleyCA,etal.Areviewoffattyacidprofilesandantioxidantcontentingrass-fedandgrain-fedbeef.NutritionJournal2010;9:10.

U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, USDA Nutrient Data Laboratory. USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 25. 2012. Available at: http://ndb.nal.usda.gov/. Accessed January 4, 2013.

* A 3-ounce serving of lean beef provides approximately 16% of the highest adequate intake for choline (550mg).

Otten JJ, et al. Dietary Reference Intakes: The Essential Guide to Nutrient Requirements. Institute of Medicine of the National Academies. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press, 2006.

“Nutrient content claims for ‘‘good source,’’ ‘‘high,’’ ‘‘more,’’ and ‘‘high potency”’ Code of Federal Regulations Title 21, Pt. 101.54, 2012 ed. Available at: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CFR-2012-title21-vol2/pdf/CFR-2012-title21-vol2-sec101-54.pdf. Accessed January 4, 2013.

Nutrient-rich beefAll choices of beef are excellent or good sources of 10 essential nutrients and many of Americans’ favorite cuts, suchasT-Bone,Sirloinsteakand93%LeanGroundBeef,meet government guidelines for lean.5,6,7Severalofthekeynutrientsinbeef,specificallyironandcholine,areknown tobelackinginthedietsofmanyAmericans,especiallywomen and children. Research shows that when included in a healthy diet and lifestyle, lean beef offers several health benefitsincludinghearthealth,muscledevelopmentandweight management.

Beef’s beneficial fatty acid profile Whileananimal’sdietcanimpactbeef’sfattyacidprofile,it remains primarily monounsaturated and saturated fatty acids regardless of the feeding practice. For example, extended grain feeding can actually increase the amount of monounsaturated fat, which has cholesterol-lowering effects.And,feedinggrasslongercaninfluencetheamountofomega-3 fatty acid in beef. However, either beef choice offers thesamehealthbenefitsinahealthy,balanceddiet.

About half the fatty acids in beef are monounsaturated, the sameheart-healthykindfoundinoliveoil.One-thirdofthesaturated fat in beef is stearic acid, which has a neutral effect on blood cholesterol levels and is the same fat recognized indarkchocolateforitsbenefits.Polyunsaturatedfattyacidsrepresent the smallest class of lipids found in beef which includeomega-3,omega-6andconjugatedlinoleicacid(CLA).

Whileallbeefofferssmallamountsofomega-3fattyacidsandcancontributetoomega-3intake,theAmericanHeartAssociationrecommendsfattyfishsuchassalmonastheprimary source for omega-3 fatty acids.

SFA

MUFA

Omega-3

Omega-6 minus CLA

CLA

SFA

MUFA

Omega-3

Omega-6 minus CLA

CLA

Grass-finished beef fatty acid profile8

Total polyunsaturated fats = ~ 13%Total omega-6 = ~ 9%

Grain-finished beef fatty acid profile8

Total polyunsaturated fats = ~ 9%Total omega-6 = ~ 8%

46%

3%

6%

4%

46%

7%

1%

1%

45%

41%

A 3-ounce serving of lean beef(about 155 calories) contributesless than 10 percent of calories

to a 2,000-calorie diet,yet it supplies more than

10 percent of the Daily Value for: