Pasture-fed farming involves raising livestock on open pasture where they are free to roam about. There is no confinement, and their diet consists of natural grasses and legumes. According to a review of scientific publications by Daley, Doyle, Nade and Larson (see references) pasture fed beef may offer the following benefits:

Lower in Fat and Calories: Meat from pasture-fed cattle is lower in total fat than meat from grain-fed animals. Pasture-fed beef may have as little as one-third the fat of a similar cut from a grain-fed animal and the same amount of fat as a skinless chicken breast. Consuming lean beef can also help lower LDL (the "bad" cholesterol) levels. Because it is lower in fat, pasture-fed beef is also lower in calories. Fat has approximately nine calories per gram whereas protein has only 4 calories per gram. So the more fat a cut of meat has, the greater the number of calories it will have.

More Omega-3 Fatty Acids and Vitamin E: Sixty percent of the fatty acids in grass are omega-3. Meat from pasture-fed animals can contain as much as 2-4 times more omega-3 fatty acids than grain-fed animals. Omega-3 fatty acids are "good" fats that are essential to our health. Pasture-fed beef can have as much as four times more vitamin E than grain-fed beef. Pasture-fed beef even contains twice as much vitamin E as grain-fed beef from animals that are given vitamin E supplements!

Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA): Products from pasture-fed animals are rich in conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) which is another type of good fat. CLA is stored in fat cells and has been shown to reduce cancer risks in humans. Pasture-fed animals contain as much as three-to-five times more CLA than grain-fed animals.