Shire Gate Farms delivers beef that is:

SHIRE GATE FARMS DELIVERS BEEF THAT IS:

• High Welfare Farm Management

• Antibiotic and Hormone-Free Product

• 100% Grassfed Cattle

• Tasty and Tender Beef

Shire Gate Farms meets the exacting standards of Animal Welfare Approved® (AWA) program and American Grassfed Association® (AGA). Annual audits for both organizations are conducted at our location, as well as inspections of our processing plants.

What is grassfed?
Grass fed meat is a result of animals who graze grass their whole lives instead of consuming other food such as grain, or eating out of feedlots.

• Why not grain fed?
  Switching a cow, for example, from grass to grain is so disturbing to the animal’s digestive system that it can kill the animal if not done gradually and if the animal is not continually fed antibiotics. These animals are naturally designed to forage, but people make them eat grain, primarily corn, in order to make them as fat as possible.

• What are the benefits of grass fed meat on the environment?
  It provides enormous savings in energy, virtual elimination of pesticides and chemical fertilizers on those lands, elimination of catastrophic flooding that periodically plagues the Mississippi Basin, and a dramatic reduction in global warming gases.

• How do grass fed farms affect livestock?
  Animals on grass fed certified farms are treated with the most humane conditions. They are genuinely handled with care.

• How does grass fed meat affect our diet?
  Grass fed beef consists of no hormones and no antibiotics. If the animals we eat digest these products, then we too inevitably infect our body with the same harmful sources. Grass-fed meat eliminates this problem.

• Is 100% of your livestock grass fed?
  Yes, each and every animal on Shire Gate Farm is grass fed.

• Is there another name for grass fed meat?
  Yes. Pasture-raised beef, pasture-grown , and grass-finished beef are common names that mean the same thing as grass-fed.

• Is all organic meat grass fed?
  No. Beef, for example, can be certified as organic even if the livestock eats grain, as long as the grain is considered organic. This still does not negate that grain is not a natural part of the livestock’s diet.

Shire Gate Farms beef is produced to strict management protocols:

How are the animals tracked?

• All animals are individually identified

• All animals meet the Shire Gate Farms beef protocol from birth to slaughter

How are the animals looked after?

• Calves are raised by their mothers

• All animals have constant access to pasture

• All animals are managed to promote health and avoid parasites and disease

• No routine or sub-therapeutic use of antibiotics is permitted but sick animals cannot be overlooked and must be treated

How are the cattle fed?

• Cattle are raised on grass and forage crops

• Cattle are not fed grain or grain by-products

• Cattle are not given antibiotics or hormones

• Cattle are not given any animal or fish by-products

• No genetically modified (GM) crops are fed to the cattle

How is the land is looked after?

• Pasture is managed without the use of pesticides and herbicides

• Natural fertilizers are spread where soil tests indicate extra nutrients are needed

• Natural fertilizers are never spread at levels or in conditions where run off or pollution could occur

• Pasture is managed to maintain fertility and a range of vegetation for cattle to eat

• Cattle are rotated onto different pastures throughout the grazing season to maximize their access to fresh grass and to reduce damage to the ground

More Questions? Reach out to us at the Farm!