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Welcome to Rosewood Farm
Why Grass-fed Beef?
So, why not just go to the supermarket and buy that steak or roast from the meat counter? Because all beef is NOT created equally. After repeated tainted food illnesses, more and more people want to know where their food is coming from, how it being produced, and that it is safe for their families. When you choose products from pastured animals, you are eating the food that nature intended. You are also eating food that is nutritious, wholesome and delicious....like it used to be.
Grass-raised beef refers to meat that has been produced by feeding cattle a diet of high quality forage from start to finish. This is the old fashioned farming method we have chosen to practice. Our animals remain their entire lives on our farm, never entering a feedlot. We keep them "home of the range", feeding them a grass diet that is as close as possible to their native diets. Because we are willing to let the animals grow at their normal pace, we do not implant them with hormones or feed them growth promoting additives. Animals raised on our pastures live low-stress lives and are naturally healthy, so we do not need to feed them antibiotics, preferring, instead to allow their own immune systems to work.
Grass-fed beef is low in fat and contains high levels of Omega-3 and Omega-6 acids (CLA), two components reputed to have positive health effects, including the ability to moderate body weight/composition, glucose metabolism and the immune system. One way to invest in your family's health is by eating grass-fed beef.
We operate our farm on a very small scale, and because the cattle are fed only grass hay with small amounts of grain added for energy in extreme winter conditions, it takes them longer to reach market weight than feedlot cattle. This longer time frame and the high demand for our premium, quality beef product may result in a wait time for our beef. We sell beef "by the side", which means the customer receives all the meat from one half of the animal. Since we raise smaller breeds of cattle, the sides average 150lbs (+ or -) rather than the typical 300-400 lbs that is produced from full sized breeds. This convenient size suits smaller families and requires less freezer space.
Our customers may choose any of the following cuts with their order:
*Steaks: Sirloin, T-Bone, Tenderloin, New York, Inside Round, Sirloin Tip, Prime Rib
*Roasts: Rump, Sirloin Tip, Blade, Cross Rib
*Other: Lean Ground Beef, Stewing Beef, Short Ribs, Soup Bones
 In an attempt to produce safe food products for our family and our customers our farm is now registered with the "Verified Beef Production" program (VBP) and we have demonstrated conformation to on-farm food safety requirements. This national program is recognized by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. More information on the Verified Beef Production program can be found at
Buying beef in bulk can provide excellent savings:
- Excellent pricing — buying a side of beef can save you money over regular grocery store prices. You will pay a premium for the better quality cuts at the grocery store, but at one set price/lb, you will get Tenderloin, Rib Eye, New York and Sirloin steaks, Sirloin Tip, Rump and Cross Rib roasts, and other options. The cost of processing, custom cutting, and wrapping are all included in our pricing.
- Superior quality meat — grocery-store meat is normally aged 5-7 days. Meat purchased from Rosewood Farm is aged 14-21 days and is hormone and antibiotic free. It is also grass-fed adding significantly to it's nutritional value because of it's Omega-3 and Omega-6 properties. You are able to choose the cuts of meat and package sizes that suits your family.
- Uniformity of product — commercial ground beef is often produced using meat from dozens of animals of unknown quality. When you buy a side, the ground beef is produced from a single animal, which minimizes the risk of contamination.
- Constant costing — because you’re buying your meat all at once, it’s possible to budget your costs for an extended period.
- Fewer trips to the grocery store — you no longer have to plan your meals around what’s 'on sale'.
- Meat is packed for freezing — if you buy 'bulk pack' quantities at the grocery store, you need to re-pack the meat to freeze it. When purchasing a side of beef, this is done for you. A local custom butcher cuts and wraps the meat to your specifications.
To learn more details about the benefits of choosing products from pastured animals, read 'Pasture Perfect' by Jo Robinson or explore her website, www.eatwild.com
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The 'Factory Farm' -the other side of the coin:
Like most goods in this country, our meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy products are now being mass produced. 'Old McDonald’s Farm' has been replaced by large confinement facilities that produce a year-round supply of meat, chickens, eggs, and dairy products at a reasonable price. Although the food is cheap and convenient, factory farming is creating a host of problems, including :
1. Unnatural Diets for animals
Animals raised in factory farms are given diets designed to boost their productivity and lower costs. The main ingredient is grain but to further cut costs, the feed may contain “by-product feedstuff”. Until 1997, cattle were also being fed meat that had been trimmed from other cattle, in effect turning herbivores into carnivores. This unnatural practice is believed to be the underlying cause of “mad cow disease.”
2. Animal Stress
Few people realize that a high-grain diet can cause physical problems for ruminants—animals such as cattle, dairy cows, goats, bison, and sheep. Ruminants are designed to eat fibrous grasses, plants, and shrubs—not starchy, low-fiber grain. When cattle are switched from pasture to grain, they can become afflicted with a number of disorders, including a common but painful condition called “subacute acidosis.” Cattle with subacute acidosis kick at their bellies, go off their feed, and eat dirt. To prevent more serious and sometimes fatal reactions, these animals are given chemical additives along with a constant, low-level dose of antibiotics. Some of these antibiotics are the same ones used in human medicine. When medications are overused in the feedlots, bacteria become resistant to them. When people become infected with disease-resistant bacteria, there are few drugs available to treat them.
3. Lower Nutritional Value
Switching ruminants from their natural diet of grasses to full grain feeding also lowers the nutritional value of their meat and dairy products. Compared with grass-fed meat, grain-fed meat contains more total fat, saturated fat, and calories . It also has less vitamin E, beta-carotene, and two health-promoting fats called omega-3 fatty acids and “conjugated linoleic acid,” or CLA. One result of our modern “advances” in animal technology is inferior food.
4. The Environment
Raising animals on pasture is better for the environment than raising them in confinement. In a conventional feedlot operation, for example, cattle deposit large amounts of manure in a small amount of space. The manure must be collected and transported away from the area. It costs money to haul it away, so it is dumped as close to the feedlot as possible. As a result, the surrounding soil is overloaded with nutrients, resulting in ground and water pollution. When animals are raised on pasture, their manure is a welcome source of organic fertilizer, not a “waste management problem.”
If you would like to invest in your family's health, you may contact us to inquire about availability and pricing of our antibiotic free, hormone free, grass-fed freezer beef, please contact us at:
Chris and Pat Bothe
Box 60 Group 4 RR 1
Anola , MB. CANADA
R0E 0A0 Phone: (204) 866-4110 Email: pcbothe@nlis.ca |
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Grass Fed Beef
