Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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Most of the beef I eat is grass fed for a host of reasons. But when it comes to corn fed beef, I have often wondered if it's any better/worse than the beef of conventionally fed cows that get all sorts of other grains in their diet.

Corn fed beef is usually much more pink in color, and tastes a little sweeter. It's very popular with the Irish for some reason. Also, it is my understanding that Pastrami is often made from seasoned corn fed beef.

I know this might sound like the old cliche... which is worse? getting stabbed in the eye with an ice pick or having your left leg severed at the thighbone with a saw blade (i.e. the lesser of 2 evilz) but that's not really what I'm after with this question.

Is there anything notable about corned beef specifically that is better/worse than standard grain fed beef?

Is eating a couple slices of otherwise qualifying pastrami meat any different than eating a couple slices of non grass fed roast beef?

flag	asked Jun 27 2011 at 19:21 Jack Kronk 19.9k●2●33●101

John J. Collins · Accepted Answer · 2011-06-27 20:31:36Z UTC

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To clarify. It seems you may be confusing 'corned beef' with 'corn-fed beef? If so, just to be clear: The term 'corned beef' has NOTHING to do with the food-grain known as corn. The term 'corned-beef' is an old term and the 'corn' that the term refers to is actually the salt or "corns of salt" or "grains of salt" that the meat is treated with. BTW, although it is not common (yet) both corned-beef and pastrami can be prepared/made from grass-fed beef. Cheers.

answered Jun 27 2011 at 20:31

John J. Collins
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	yah see I could totally be confusing these terms... who can blame me right? i thought corned beef and corn fed beef were just 2 diff ways to say it. so it's "corned beef" that's pinkish? that's very interesting. – Jack Kronk Jun 27 2011 at 21:09
	When I've bought corned beef before it's often been accompanied by little seasoning packets with whole peppercorns...I initially thought it was the peppercorn seasoning which gave it that name. – familygrokumentarian Jun 27 2011 at 22:30
	corned beef tongue, yum. I make my own, atleast once a month. Nobody i have met in finland makes it at home, i learned it from fergus hendersons fantastic nose to tail cook book. It also got me into paleo. – Jan Jun 28 2011 at 7:45
	This is correct. The 'corn' in 'corned beef' refers to the big (corn-sized) grains of salt that the beef is backed in. Sometimes you can see remnants of them still in the bag. – CaveRat Jun 28 2011 at 19:55

BAMBAM · Answer 2 · 2011-06-27 19:25:55Z UTC

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Corn goes undigested because it is a grain and therefore not in sync with the cow's biology. It breeds higher populations of the lethal strands of ecoli bacteria in the cow's colon.

I think breeding ecoli should be made illegal.

If some Ma and Pa shop were breeding a lethal virus or bacteria, it could be used for biological warfare and their operation would get shut down faster than you can say "terrorist".

answered Jun 27 2011 at 19:25

BAMBAM
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Hi BAMBAM. Do you have any links to that research that you are able to include, specifically that bit about the ecoli due to the undigested corn? Thanks. – Jack Kronk Jun 27 2011 at 19:30

The threat of E. coli An acidic intestinal tract also favors the growth of E. coli. Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore’s Dilemma, states that the lethal strain of E. coli known as 0157:H7 is believed to have evolved in the gut of feedlot cattle. The development of a more acidic environment in cows’ intestinal tracts created an acid-resistant strain of the pathogen, which is able to survive the acidic conditions of the human stomach and prove fatal. In the documentary Food, Inc., Pollan states that switching feedlot cattle to a grass diet would eliminate 80 percent of the E. coli in the co – BAMBAM Jun 27 2011 at 19:45

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"I think breeding ecoli should be made illegal." E.coli is one of the natural organisms living in the gut of most mammals. Even humans. We can't help but "breed" it simply by living. – Omnomnivore Jun 27 2011 at 22:21

Omnomnivore · Answer 3 · 2011-06-27 23:36:50Z UTC

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I'm also curious about this (since the corn-fed vs corned beef nomenclature has been resolved). "Ontario corn fed beef" is touted as being superior to "regular" beef in our grocery stores.
Is it, in terms of paleo nutrition?

edited Jun 27 2011 at 23:36

answered Jun 27 2011 at 22:25

Omnomnivore
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Cassie · Answer 4 · 2012-11-10 01:48:31Z UTC

I know one thing about the difference between eating grass fed animals to eating grain fed animals - my reaction to the grain fed meat is not good.

I get the same reactions when I eat grain fed beef and chicken as if I had eaten gluten, which is a painful back and stomach during the ensuing night.

Grass fed meats seems to be a lot tougher (not tender) here in Australia but it's better than eating meat that is unnaturally raised using grains to feed the animal.

If the bacteria found in grain fed animals faeces is really different (studies can confirm this) to those animals that eat grass then what does that say? It's like us when we eat a whole lot of carbs. Unbeneficial bacteria proliferate because of the amount of food they are getting. That's why so many of todays diseases are stemming coming from the gut.

So how can an animals be healthy with this huge change of diet? Crazy to think they could be really knowing what we know now.

Terese · Answer 5 · 2013-02-07 21:33:07Z UTC

This article spells it out quite nicely, and here is a quote:

"Essentially, when a cow is eating grains instead of grass, its body is failing. It may be piling on the pounds but its stores of substances vital to life and well being are being used up at a rate that neither this unnatural food or artificial foods can even hope to counter balance."

Corn Fed Beef vs Conventional Grain Fed Beef

5 Answers