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03
Feb
VICTORIA’S kangaroo population has surged by 40 per cent since 2018, to almost 2 million today, prompting the Andrews Government to lift this year’s harvesting quota to 95,680.
31
Jan
Meet Tanya and here all about the values we share.
15
Jan
Feedlots play a huge but controversial role in raising beef cattle in Australia. The sector has grown, with approximately 40% of Australia's total beef supply sourced from feedlot animals. The feedlot sector has grown over the past 20 years to become a $2.7 billion industry. Recent information shows that 80% of all beef sold in the majority of Australian supermarkets is cattle feedlot sourced. Currently, there are around 600 feedlots throughout Australia, with the majority located in farming states and territories like New South Wales and Southern Queensland.
While feedlots help "drought-proof" Australia's beef industry by ensuring a constant beef supply to domestic and international markets, there are growing concerns about animal welfare and its effect on the environment. Before we explore these concerns and more, let's first define what feedlots are.
What are Cattle Feedlots?
Feedlots are yarded areas where cattle, after being raised on pasture, are held in close confinement and fed in groups until they reach certain weights prior to being slaughtered. Here, cattle live in tightly confined spaces with hundreds if not thousands of other cows; they are fed excessive amounts of feeds and receive copious amounts of drugs (i.e., antibiotics) to keep them uncontaminated and alive.
Although the industry is regulated and claims it follows environmental safety standards, in most cases, animals' welfare in feedlots is mostly determined by the facility's management. This leaves a huge gap for lapses in animal welfare and environmental concerns.
- Unhealthy Environments
Feedlots are fenced-in outdoor areas where cows are crammed together to prevent them from exercising and obstructing the fattening process. The spaces are barren, lacking grass for cows to graze and trees for shade. Cattle have to stand in these small crowded areas in the ruminants of their own urine and faeces.
Feedlots can get very muddy when it rains, causing cows to become wet, cold, and dirty. When it gets hot during droughts or summer, the lots become dusty and dry. With the lack of shade coupled with excessive weight brought on by being fed increasingly heavy diets, cows often experience heat stress problems that can sometimes prove fatal. Currently, there's no legal requirement for farmers to provide shelter to cows in feedlots.
- Pollution
Feedlots produce huge amounts of animal waste and other pollutants that can be harmful to the environment. Feedlot waste is likely to contain cleaning agents, silage leachate, chemicals used in livestock care, antibiotic-resistant bacteria, ammonia, heavy metals, and milkhouse waste.
This waste is often stored for a while in waste storage pits or structures before disposal on farm fields. This is where feedlot waste enters surface water, contaminating it, causing water pollution. Runoff of feedlot waste into water streams can be detrimental to fish and other aquatic life and can cause "dead zones" in coastal areas. Feedlots also cause air pollution due to ammonia, particulate matter, odour, greenhouse gases, and volatile organic compounds emissions.
- Artificial Diets
In natural environments, cows spend up to 12 hours grazing on grass; in a feedlot, they are fed a high-energy, high-fat diet of barley and wheat. However, the cow's digestive system isn't designed to continually consume corn or grain products, causing them to get sick often. As a result, they're given a constant dose of antibiotics. Animals in feedlots are fed in this manner in order to reach the market weight requirements.
- E. Coli Contamination
E.coli bacteria are often found in animal waste, and since feedlots confine cows to small spaces filled with feacal matter, E. coli contamination is inevitable. Cows that are fed a high corn diet also have increased E. coli amounts in their digestive tracts. E- Coli contamination can cause illness in animals as well as humans.
- Injury, Illness, and Early Death
Animals can suffer a wide range of injuries and illnesses in feedlots caused by the feedlot environment, dehydration, stress, unnatural diets, and transportation. The most common diseases include acidosis, botulism, bovine respiratory disease, pink eye (blight), footrot, tick fever, and feedlot bloating.
Although most of these diseases are treatable, due to a large number of cows in the feedlot, sick cows might not be identified early, resulting in death.
Conclusion
Confining animals in small areas where they can't naturally graze as they should go against everything we stand for at Castle Estate. We believe animals must be free to roam and graze as nature intended- grass only, not grain-fed in lots. Grass-fed beef is also better than grain-fed beef as it has significantly lower levels of saturated fat and is higher in nutrients and antioxidants. But with 80% of all beef sold in the majority of domestic supermarkets sourced from the cattle feedlot sector, your best bet is to avoid buying meat from the supermarket. Order your weekly meat from Castle Estate.com.au.
Sources
- https://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/animals-and-livestock/beef-cattle/husbandry/hormonal-growth-promotants/q-and-a
- https://www.business.qld.gov.au/industries/farms-fishing-forestry/agriculture/livestock/cattle/hormonal-growth-promotants
- https://www.al.org.au/feedlots/
- https://futurebeef.com.au/knowledge-centre/feedlots/#:~:text=Approximately%2040%25%20of%20Australia's%20total,to%20over%20100%20international%20markets.
- https://kb.rspca.org.au/knowledge-base/what-are-the-animal-welfare-issues-of-feedlots/
31
Dec
Wishing you a wonderful new year ahead from all of our family to yours!
Keep safe and enjoy the celebrations and here is to an awesome 2021
The Castle Family
28
Dec
We invite you to touch, feel, see and taste this region of the Victoria with the hand selection of local produces from our Providore store.
Food is life and we celebrate that in all that we do. We cherish the animals that provide us with our incredible tasting meats and we also love to work with the best artisan food and beverage companies who share the same values and principles as we do.
If you are looking for an extra special gift fit for any occasion, our artisan food gift baskets are the perfect package! You will find a wonderful mix of incredible tasting meats with complimentary condiments and treats to surprise and delight even the fussiest foodies. Uncover brands you never heard of and tastes you haven’t experienced before at the click of a button delivered to your door.
The providore store is the true expression of our inner passionate foodie and we believe you will be just as inspired and engaged with these brands and their delicious products as we are.
You can now order online at:
https://castleestate.com.au/providore/
To stay in the loop, visit castleestate.com.au and signup to our newsletter.
Cheers,
The Castle Family.
26
Dec
At Castle Estate we believe “home is where the heart is” and gathering around the dinner table sharing top quality food with the people we love is one of life’s simple but most treasured pleasures. We are lucky to have at our fingertips the most fresh, tasty and nutritious meat available and we love sharing that with you. We only slaughter to order ensuring fresh food is delivered to your door. So why not order your favourites online at our Providore store and enjoy some of our community produce just in time for New Years delivery.
To stay in the loop, visit castleestate.com.au and signup to our newsletter.
Cheers,
The Castle Family.
24
Dec
Our Farming principles
At Castle Estate we turnover paddocks regularly, we don't over breed, and we let nature take its course. It is not about fast growing yield, it's about sustainability in all areas of farming. The paddocks provide the most nutritionally balanced diet for farm animals which is essential for them to maintain optimal health. So it makes sense that a healthy animal will provide not only great tasting meat but meat with nutritional value that can bolster the health of the person consuming it.
To stay in the loop, visit castleestate.com.au and signup to our newsletter.
Cheers,
The Castle Family.
21
Dec
Castle Estate is located in Camperdown, South-West Victoria. Situated on the banks of Lake Purrumbete, the estate consists of 905 acres of some of the country’s most fertile agricultural land. We come from seven generations of the Castle family who have been farming on this land since 1851. Ethical, natural and sustainable farming is in our blood. We advocate humane farming practices with no intervention, no antibiotics and no lot feeding. Our animals live as nature intended and this is key because not only do we respect the animals, we believe that the better they live, the better the taste.
17
Dec
Should you eat meat from grass-fed or grain-fed animals? This big question tends to bring a lot of confusion especially if you do not know what entails the feeding process and the resultant effects. What these animals eat affects the overall nutrient composition of their meat.
The feeding process
All animals start with a milk diet in the first 7-9 months of their lives. Grass-fed animals proceed to feed on grass and pasture throughout their lives. Grain-fed animals are placed in feedlots where they are confined to stalls.
They feed on such grains as wheat, corn, soy, barley, and sorghum. These animals receive growth hormones and antibiotics to maximize their growth.
What is best for animals is to roam free and eat as nature intended not be injected or forced into feedlots.
Effect on quality and taste
The different diets contribute to the quality and taste of the meat. Grass-fed animals give beef that has slightly yellow coloured fat. The pigment in grass results in this hue. Though the meat quality is not affected, its flavour is more complex.
Grain-fed animals have beef whose fat is brighter and whiter. The meat is more marbled resulting from the high amounts of fat and sugar in the grains. The flavour of this beef is buttery.
Nutritive value
What these animals eat directly correlates to the nutrients in their beef. The table below summarizes the composition of fatty acids in their beef.
The omega-3 and Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA) have health benefits. This makes the beef from grass-fed animals more nutritious. It contains a higher amount of Vitamin A and E compared to beef from grain-fed animals. It is also rich in antioxidants. The beef from grass-fed animals tends to be leaner with a different texture.
Additional benefits of grass-fed animals
- On the environment – grass and other types of pasture do not require fertilisers and pesticides to grow. When animals graze directly on the pasture, they add to the soil's fertility. This in turn reduces carbon emissions.
The same does not apply for grains. They have to be cultivated using monoculture farming and at times deforestation happens. The soil under grass retains a lot more carbon and organic matter within the ground as opposed to the soil under cultivation.
- For farmers – it is cheaper to feed animals on grass and pasture. You do not have to worry about purchasing or budgeting for their feed. Grass-fed animals rarely fall sick and so do not require constant veterinary attention.
- For animals – are healthy throughout their lifecycle and their meat is flavourful. The meat quality is unique and the nutritional value is high.
Is grass-fed or grain-fed beef more sustainable?
When you observe best practice in grazing, you enable significant carbon sequestration. This increases the soil's biomass. You end up with more carbon in the soil, better water infiltration, and more soil microbes.
Grazing helps maintain a healthy ecosystem. The animal manure helps maintain the soil's fertility by returning nutrients in the soil. Since the grazing ground is not cultivated, the grass is deep-rooted. It holds the soil well thus preventing soil erosion. All these lead to the ecosystem's regeneration making grass-fed beef more sustainable.
Key Takeaway
This article has clearly elaborated that what goes into an animal determines the quality of its meat. Grass-fed animals provide beef that enhances your health. They also help maintain a healthy ecosystem. The numerous benefits highlighted above show that grass-fed beef is the way to go. Choose grass-fed animals and help keep your planet intact.
If you are conscious about your health, try out Castle Estate Meat.
Email: [email protected]
Phone: +61 3 5594 5222
Resources:
11
Dec
Seven Generations of the Castle Family have farmed this land in South West Victoria so it was about time to lead with our reputation as well as our values when it comes to farming!
Over the past few months we have been focusing on the future of our business. We believe that family is the future and to that point we are proud to announce that Simply Free Range and Koallah Farms have rebranded to Castle Estate in the name of heritage, community and conscious cultivation.
Simply Free Range and Koallah Farms have undertaken a heartful rebrand to Castle Estate to reflect their historical family affair of sustainable farming practices here on the estate since 1851.
With our re-brand we are now offering an online store to help promote our community goods its called The Castle Providore - a new onsite boutique store boasting all things from our farm as well as homeware to living, cooking etc.
We believe in Meat, Done Better,
We drive better farming practises and deliver higher industry standards of excellence from paddock to plate, disrupting the status quo. We are for those who eat meat (and those who choose to eat less).
The life quality of the animals we hand-rear and lovingly farm is extremely important to us. Authentic free-range farming lies in the trajectory of the animal’s life. Which means all of our animals are pasture-fed and grass-grazing, outside in the open air, consuming fresh, verdant fields.
We operate a strict no-waste policy meaning we only slaughter to order. It’s through this passion and ethical farming that we can deliver paddock-to-plate freshness and fairness that you will feel confident in (and very indulged by).
With our rebrand we are now delighted to offer;
• Smoked goods
• Weekly Friday and Saturday delivery. And Interstate delivery
• Wild game meats
• Free delivery for orders over $150
• Our new online store the Providore
To stay in the loop, visit castleestate.com.au and signup to our newsletter.
Cheers,
The Castle Family.
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