Partnering with other rotational graziers in the area, provides Cattleana Ranch the opportunity to offer you Pastured Pork and Lamb.
Pigs do eat pasture!
Pastured pigs are vitamin enriched --- naturally.
Pigs raised on pasture have 300 percent more vitamin E and 74 percent more selenium (a vital antioxidant) in their milk than pigs raised in confinement, according to Don C. Mahan Professor of Animal Sciences at Ohio State University. This bounty of nutrients promotes healthier litters, shorter farrowing times, and good milk let down. The pigs' meat is enriched with vitamins as well. Fortifying the pigs' diet with synthetic vitamins, the standard practice in confinement operations, does not achieve the same results because the artificial vitamins are more poorly absorbed. (Mutetikka, D.B., and D.C. Mahan, 1993. Effect of pasture, confinement, and diet fortification with vitamin E and selenium on reproducing gilts and their progeny. J. Anim. Sci. 71:3211.)
Cattleana Ranch now offers 100% Grass-fed Lamb!
Lambs raised on pasture are higher in protein, lower in fat, and higher in Lutein.
A team of scientists from the USDA compared grassfed lambs with lambs fed grain in a feedlot. They found that "lambs grazing pasture had 14% less fat and about 8% more protein compared to grain-fed lamb." The researchers acknowledged that "consumer desires for healthier meats have shifted the emphasis to leaner, trimmer carcasses.." and that raising more sheep on pasture will "benefit our economy by reducing reliance upon expensive grain supplements..."
The more that nutritionists learn about naturally occurring antioxidants, the more they like lutein. Lutein is closely related to beta-carotene, but is absorbed more readily. Lutein reduces the risk of macular degeneration (a leading cause of blindness) and may also help prevent breast and colon cancer.
Meat from sheep raised on pasture has twice as much lutein as meat from grain-fed sheep --- yet another
nutritional advantage of raising animals naturally.
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