This is an old article but it's pretty funny....and tragic

[Guest guest]

I was going to post this some time ago when I first read it, but didn't for some

reason. I stumbled across it again today and so here it is.

---------------------------

From: http://www.grist.org/article/the-myth-of-grass-fed-beef/

The Myth of Grass Fed Beef

It's only natural

1 Feb 2007 12:30 PM

About twice a day, an email from a mystery man/unflagging anti-ethanol crusader

named Ray Wallace appears in my inbox, chock full of excerpts from the latest

ethanol slams and, on lucky days, choice quotes from politicos and the like

sounding less-than-smart about the whole business. I'm not sure how I got on his

listserv, and I can't quite say how you can (but if you'd really like to, let me

know and we can probably work something out).

Anyhow (I'm getting to my point), I mention Ray so as to credit him for alerting

me to this quote, contained in today's edition:

I'm a big believer in ethanol ... We're going to run into a constraint

pretty soon, though. It turns out corn is needed for more than just ethanol. You

got to feed your cows and feed your hogs.

-- From President W. Bush's January 30, 2007 speech in East Peoria,

Illinois.

The funny thing is, I'd always thought we feed corn to cows and pigs because

it's dirt cheap and needing to be gotten rid of.

It's not the first time someone has attempted to correct me on this. A few

months ago, I was strolling past the meat counter at our regional mid-sized

grocery chain and thought, hey, I should ask for grass-fed beef, 'cause they'll

only carry it if they perceive demand.

The conversation went something like this:

Me: Hi, do you have any grass-fed beef?

Butcher: Hmm, grass-fed? I don't think you can feed grass to cows.

Me: Well, they're ruminant animals, so I think that's what they're supposed to

eat.

Butcher: [sympathetic-but-authoritative head shake] I don't think so. They need

vitamins and minerals and stuff.

Me: Uh ...

Butcher: Now this [points down at large, marbled slab in meat case], this is

corn-fed beef.

Me: Yeah, well, um, thanks anyway.

So I don't know what those so-called grass-fed-beef farmers have been charging

me an arm and a leg for, but with the president's backing, I'm going to call

that bluff.

In the meantime, I'm relieved to know that the FDA allows farmers to feed

chicken manure to cattle -- though I'll have to ask my butcher about the vitamin

and mineral content.

* Comments

Olmstead is a graduate student in plant breeding and sustainable

agriculture at Iowa State University and a graduate fellow with the Land

Institute in Salina, Kan., and a freelance writer on agricultural and

environmental issues.