About Tussock Sedge Farm Beef


Our beef is distinguished from beef you can buy at the supermarket by what we do not put in it, and what we do put in it. We do not feed or implant our steers with hormones to accelerate their growth like the beef you buy in the supermarkets. As a result, our grain-fed steers require one to two more months to fatten than supermarket steers before they reach butchering weight. Nor do we give our steers antibiotics in their feed (or any other way) to keep them healthy the way mass cattle producers do. Instead, we rely on natural foods, clean barns, lush pastures and time to keep our steers healthy and growing.

We can make these guarantees because we control all aspects of the production cycle. Since 1995 we have run a small-scale cow and calving operation that yields about 100 to 120 calves each year. During their first summer, the calves roam free on Tussock Sedge's green pastures with their mothers. Each year we fatten the grown steers on our farm using corn, hay, and silage, most of which is grown on our farm. The steers are butchered and packaged at local specialty shops and we sell the meat directly to local customers.

Grass Fed Versus Grain Fed


Currently we offer very high quality grain-fed steers using locally grown corn, hay and silage. We look forward to offering a choice of either grain- or grass-fed beef in the future.

Most of the beef eaten in the United States is from a "grain-fed" steer; that is, a heavy diet of corn plus hay and silage. A grain-fed steer has a taste that American beef-eaters are familiar with, a taste highly dependent upon the amount of fat in the meat, called marbling. The amount of marbling present is used to grade a grain-fed beef into categories of "select", "choice" and the superior, "prime". In contrast, grass-fed steers do not grow as large, nor do they gain the heavy marbling of fat as a grain-fed steer does, making it impossible for them to be categorized on the same scale as grain-fed animals. However, grass-fed beef might feature unique health benefits like higher Omega-3 fatty acids and lower saturated fats.

From an epicurean perspective, a steer tastes like what it eats, and grain- and grass-fed steers taste very, very different. Our family is divided: some of us prefer the sweet, rich taste of grain-fed while others prefer the leaner, more complex taste of grass-fed. The difference must be tasted - but don't just taste one grass-fed animal! There is far more variance in taste and tenderness in grass-fed animals than grain-fed, and some can be downright tough.

From an environmental perspective, as cows naturally eat grass and have difficulty digesting grains like corn, a grass-fed steer is ultimately a healthier animal. In addition, grain-fed beef contributes heavily to the large-scale industrial methods of farming today, including the environmental devastation that agricultural petrochemicals have on land and water.

Slaughtering


Our beef steers are slaughtered under USDA inspection at Springfield Meats in Richlandtown, Pennsylvania, twelve miles from Tussock Sedge Farm. Handling practices there meet our high standards of care and cleanliness.

Environmental Impacts


We apply best farming practices to improve the quality of the land and water on our farm. We have fenced the boundaries of our streams and wetlands to keep cow effluents out of the local water system. This also maintains our stream banks and waterways from the eroding effects of cow hooves. Our fields are sloped and terraced with piped outlets and waterways to shed rainwater without washing away the topsoil. To provide high quality grasses to the cows at all times in the summer, we have divided our grasslands into smaller 2 to 4 acre paddocks, encouraging the cows to eat the lush grasses evenly before we move them into a fresh paddock at the top of its nutrient value. Rotations are done after 3-5 days of grazing. We have enough paddocks to make a 21-day recovery possible. The cow manure deposits, along with the legumes like red clover and ledino planted, will provide all the nitrogen requirements for lush grass growth, eliminating the need for any future chemical fertilizers on the pastures.

We are also concerned with the impact of farming on local wildlife populations. Tussock Sedge features several diverse ecosystems, including streams and forests, grasslands and early successional fields, and several wetlands. We maintain tree lines and hedgerows throughout the farm to support birds and beneficial insect populations. We are further diversifying the ecosystems on the farm by building a 26 acre permanent wetland with tall grasses.

Two years ago we watched two red fox dens produce six bouncing kits each. Mink have returned, and many exotic species of songbirds migrate through each spring and fall. We hope to enhance the sheltering and food sourcing value of the farm in future years to support these and many other wild species.

Pasturing


Our cows and calves spend seven to eight months or longer outside in the fresh air and soft pastures. We are introducing practices to minimize the amount of time cows and calves spend in the barns sheltering for the winter, like adjusting the breeding cycles so that the calves are born on the grass during the mild spring and summer months. By keeping the animals in clean pastures and fresh air, they remain healthy and do not require preventative use of antibiotics commonly used elsewhere. In 2005, we introduced a strict rotational grazing practice in which we intensively graze one pasture and then move the animals into a fresh pasture. This is good soil conservation practice, as well as keeps the animals happy and well-fed.