Beef Can Still Be What's for Dinner...

In October, New York Times author Michael Moss roused the emotions and dampened the appetites of readers across America with his article about E. Coli contamination of ground beef. This moving piece details the story of Minnesotan Stephanie Smith who was paralyzed by E. coli 0157:H7 in a hamburger eaten at home in 2007. Smith’s story is but one illustration of the dangers of E. coli contamination, which Moss covers in detail, from the farm to the plate. Most disturbing are the reports of discarded bits and pieces of beef and fat from across the globe being combined to form ground beef, the difficulty tracking down the sources of meat product mixtures and the lack of testing at processing facilities. Read for yourself .

Here at Mississippi Market, we carry beef from Thousand Hills Cattle Company and Bluff Country Beef. We have chosen these two companies based on their commitment to sustainable farming, humane practices and good value. Both companies process their beef at the renouned Lorentz processing facilities in Cannon Falls (you may have read about Lorentz in The Omnivore’ Dilemma). We think you’ll agree that most conventional beef suppliers could learn a thing or two from these farms!

Thousand Hills Cattle Company, owned by Todd Churchhill, is based in Cannon Falls, Minnesota. Farmers who supply Thousand Hills with beef are located in the upper Midwest: MN, WI, IA, SD, and NE. The majority of the beef is produced right here in Minnesota. The cows are all fed 100% grasses- No corn, grain or animal byproducts and they are never confined in feedlots.

Their premium quality meat production system is “Source Verified,” meaning that they have records detailing where each steer or heifer was born and raised, and certifying that the farming practices used conform to our exacting specifications. Curious what those specifications are? Read them here .

Grassfed beef has less marbling of fat than conventional corn-fed beef because the cows get plenty of exercise out on the pasture. You’ll want to cook this beef slower and at a slightly lower heat to maintain the tenderness of the meat. Need some help? Check out these recipes .

Bluff Country Beef is a much smaller operation in Iowa. The farms that supply Bluff Country feed their cattle both grass and grain, for a final product that tastes more like the beef most Americans are used to eating and is a great value. They never use antibiotics or growth hormones. We receive Bluff Country Beef in large cuts and then process those into steaks, roasts and ground beef in-house at our West 7th store. By processing the meat ourselves on a small scale, we know that both the larger cuts and the trim used in the ground beef on any given day are traceable to one cow- never a mixture from multiple locations.

Click here for a super quick explanation of the health benefits of eating grass-fed beef.