Where to source raw meat, why grass fed, quality over quantity.

This may not be for you…if it is, excellent, let me share what I’ve learned about sourcing raw meat.

As most of you know, I’m a raw omnivore.  This means I eat all types of foods in their raw, unheated, unadultured state.  Yes, if you can believe it, this includes raw meat..

When food, especially protein, is cooked several toxins can be formed.  These toxins include heterocyclic amines, advanced glycation end products, acrylamides, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, hydroxymethylfurfural, and lipid peroxidation.

These toxins impose a burden on the body, messing with digestion and therefore health.  Raw foods have a high bioavailability, meaning that the nutrients are more easily used to fulfill the body’s many functions such as cellular regeneration and healing.

Let me touch on just a few of the very important nutrients in meat I don’t want damaged or denatured by heat….

The amino acids in meat protein help to increase the body’s glutathione levels.  Glutathione is the most powerful antioxidant made by your body.  In fact it’s known as the “Master antioxidant.” Glutathione removes free radicals thus detoxifying your body on a cellular level.  Glutathione, and all antioxidants, protect you from oxidative stress, illness, and aging.

Glutathione supplements cannot compare to a whole food such as raw meat because supplements are isolates, and do not contain the numerous synergistic nutrients found in whole foods that assist the body to function.  We are multi-dimensional beings and it makes sense to me that our bodies will recognize multi-dimensional nutrients easier than isolates.

Raw grass-fed meat also contains CoQ10. This powerful antioxidant is good for heart health, cancer prevention, immunity, energy levels, and longevity.  It also turns back the clock and increases fertility.

Zinc is found abundantly in raw red meat, eggs, and oysters.  Zinc is used in over 200 enzymatic reactions in the body.  Every cell relies on zinc for structure and function. A zinc deficiency causes acne, hair loss, diarrhea, rashes, brain problems, and nervous system issues.  Zinc is especially important for wound healing, growth, and reducing the chances of influenza.

Why I ONLY eat Grass fed meat?

Factory farms take without putting back.   They feed the animals an unnatural diet of corn, soybean, and grains.  When growing this food (corn and soy bean production) it’s devastating to the land, depletes the soil, and there is toxic runoff from fertilizer, pesticides, and herbicides that destroys aquatic life.

We are putting back more than we are taking by raising cows on a natural diet of perennial grasses and rotating large herds of animals.  Dead, depleted soil becomes a thriving grassland after ranchers rotate their grazing cattle.  Grass fed animals are the best at fertilizing the soil, they feed themselves and spread their own manure.  This saves on use of pesticides, fertilizers, and herbicides used in corn production, and fossil fuel for the transportation of their food to the feed lots and removal of their waste.

When cattle are raised humanely grazing on green grass and soaking up sunlight their food has a much greater nutritional profile.   The meat is higher in omega-3 fats, vitamin E, CLA’s(conjugated linoleic acid, a fat known to reduce the risk of cancer, diabetes, and a number of immune disorders).  The cow was not designed to eat or digest grains/corn.  Feeding cows corn may be cheap, but its like the cow is eating an unhealthy diet of Dunkin donuts 24/7.

On top of eating the wrong diet, factory farmed animals are in stressful environments, tightly packed in together with really dirty, nasty conditions.  This causes breeding grounds for bacteria growth and makes the animals sick.  Then they require large dosages of antibiotics. Sick animals make people sick.

Since I’m eating raw everything including raw eggs, raw butter, and raw meat…It’s super important to source things right, ask questions, and do your homework on the ranch.

I want to introduce you to the sustainable pristine Hearst Ranch. I found them today at Whole Foods and did my research.  They provide grass fed and grass finished meat from an 80,000 acre ranch located just in between Los Angeles and San Fran.  They don’t over stock the land, they provide seasonal beef, and their cows are cows- treated and raised in the most natural manner the way nature intended.

The quality of their beef comes from the excellent weather, terrain, micro-climate, soil, and water on the ranch.  They practice sustainable agriculture by building soil fertility and promoting the growth of grass.

Eating the raw meat part of my diet is about eating quality not quantity.   I love all raw foods and use raw meat as a supplement when my body needs it.

Steak Tartare

Steak Tartare

 
Your Friend,
Melissa Henig (grass fed girl)