FAQ:
When will this meat be available?
Our next delivery will be in February. Those who subscribe to our google group will be kept apprised of any updates and will have first dibs on the limited number of spots available when orders open.
Will the meat be USDA certified?
Yes. There will be a USDA inspector available at all times.
We are now offering beef and lamb. Check out our ordering page for specific prices. We very much hope to that this meat will be accessible for any household that cares to buy healthy, locally and ethically raised and slaughtered meat. However, we know that it will be impossible to match the prices of factory farmed meat. I would say this will be a case of “You get what you pay for.” There are many hidden costs of the factory farmed meat that we eat, both through our health and through the environment. For more info on factory farmed meat and a peek into the food industry, take a look at The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals by Michael Pollan or Peter Singer’s book The Ethics of What We Eat: Why Our Food Choices Matter.
How much meat can I buy and what cuts will be available?
In order to simplify distribution, meat will be packaged as a combination of cuts. Lamb will come as an assortment of ribs, riblets, roasts and ground lamb. Beef will come as an assortment of steaks, roasts, stew meat. We will also include bones for making broths, soups, stews and cholent. 15 lbs fills approximately 1/6 of a normal above-fridge shelf of freezer space. Chest freezers are ideal for long term storage as opposed to shelf freezers, but either will do. Frozen meat can last for 6 months. Eggs will last 3-4 weeks in the fridge.
How do I prepare all the different cuts of lamb or beef?
At the time of distribution, we will include a guide to preparing
different cuts. We will also offer recipes and cooking tips suitable
for grass-fed meat. We are here to help! Just as you might learn
about unfamiliar fruits and vegetables in a produce CSA, this is an
opportunity to enjoy meat that is different and delicious.
What should I know about how these animals are raised?
The farmers we are working with are raising grass-fed, grass-finished animals. In other words, these animals will have been living on pasture for all of their lives. They are not treated with any chronic low-level antibiotics, artificial hormones or other growth promoters. The animals and pastures are not treated with pesticides, herbicides, pour-on substances or internal wormers. They are given hay throughout the winter with additional high quality minerals and supplements if needed, particularly under severe winter weather conditions. Some farms supplement with less than 10% farm-grown oats or corn during the coldest winter months.
Who will oversee the shechita?
We are very lucky to have Rabbi Lesches, a highly respected Lubavitch rabbi overseeing the process of glatt kosher certification. He is committed to the same principles that we share. Each person who has been selected to participate in this process has a deep spiritual interest in bringing this project to fruition. For all of us, this is not “just a job.”
Is the meat certified organic?
Some of our farms are certified organic, while others are not. They all, however, fit the above criteria. For example, while some of our animals are raised on pasture that has never been treated with pesticides and are occasionally supplemented with locally grown feed, but may not be certified organic. We call some of these sustainable farms “beyond organic.”
What is “beyond organic”?
Joel Salatin, a pioneer farmer in Virginia, has coined this term to describe his method of farming. Despite his enormous role in establishing the requirements to qualify as “certified organic,” he believes that by accepting such a label, you as the consumer stop asking questions. You assume, by virtue of that certification, that you know all you need to know. However, most people would never hire an employee based only on where they graduated. They would check personal references, speak to previous employers, and interview the potential employee. What we eat should be approached with the same care.
While organic certification means that there are no pesticides used in the cows’ feed and that they are not fed antibiotics or growth hormones, it doesn’t necessarily mean that the animals are treated well, that they eat grass, or that the slaughter or shechita is performed with respect or kindness.
While we certainly support organic farms, organic doesn’t necessarily mean:
Your food is locally produced.
Your food is fresher.
Your food is more nutritious.
Your food is ethically raised or slaughtered.
Your food is produced by someone who cares about your safety or interests.
In addition to the ethical aims of our project, we aim to provide these benefits as well.
Our goal is to have as transparent a process as possible, with the possibility of co-op members being allowed organized visits to the farms or even the slaughterhouse if they would like. In this way, you can go as far as you would like to confirm that these animals are treated as we say they are.
Is grass-fed meat more nutritious?
Compared to grain-fed beef, research has found that beef raised exclusively on a grass fed diet:
*is naturally lean, with less than half the total fat and less saturated fat and 100 fewer calories in 6 oz.
*has as low as 2:1 ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids where grain fed beef has up to 20:1 ratio or higher.
*has a polyunsaturated/saturated fatty acid ratio similar to wild game.
*is 3-5 times higher in conjugated lineolic acid (an omega 3 precursor).
*is 4 times higher in vitamins A and E.
*has more beta carotene.
*carries minimal risk of E.coli contamination compared to industrial cattle.
What is the difference between "grass-fed" and "grass-finished"?
The definition of grass-fed is controversial. Thus far, there is no
official guidelines. At this point, grass-fed means that the animal
has been eaten grass or hay for a period of its life, but does not
necessarily mean that it has lived on pasture nor that it has been fed
grain for a given period. It also doesn't mean that the animal hasn't
been raised in a feedlot entirely on grain at the end of its life. in
addition to the ethical objections to supporting this type of animal
confinement, finishing an animal on grain alone detracts considerably
from the omega-3 content of the meat. Ultimately, this impacts the
health benefit of the meat considerably. Knowing that animal was
grass-fed and finished, however, means that the animal has eaten grass
for its entire life and was not in confinement eating grain alone.
Confirming that an animal was grass-fed and -finished is an important
and meaningful distinction.
Will this meat taste better?
Grass-fed beef has a different taste than corn-raised beef. For many people, it is far superior to the taste of industrial beef. For others, it is an acquired taste.
One of our farms states:
Tenderness and taste in beef, especially grass-fed and finished beef, is enhanced by reducing stress throughout the animal's life and during the final processing. The cows have a wonderfully peaceful life on our farm. They only wonder which pasture will be their next meal! Sometimes they are waiting by the gate to let us know their preference. We only take small groups of cattle for processing, always 10 or less. Each steer is processed individually using a USDA inspected facility for safe and humane processing.
Will the beef be dry-aged?
Yes. Dry aging imparts a particular tenderness and unmatched flavor to grass-fed and -finished meat. Good dry-aged meat is hard to find, due to increased cost from loss of moisture and weight, additional trimming, and storage needs. However, we feel it's worth it!
Why is this project a co-op? Why not just package it and distribute through my local kosher butcher or grocery store?
Ultimately, bringing kosher meat to consumers is an unbelievably complicated process. Obviously, there is much more to deal with than simple USDA certification. Each step of the process requires money, which is part of the reason that kosher meat is so expensive. Because we would like to make this meat widely available at a fair cost, however, we would like to minimize as many middlemen as possible. This also allows us to fairly compensate the farmer, so that your food dollars will sustain local farmers and maintain NY farmland from being further developed.
We also believe that local food should be a grassroots endeavor, and that it promotes community. Though the Jewish community has a long tradition of coming together over food, we want to create a community of Jews all over the NY area that believe in eating sustainable, local agriculture.
We are willing to sell to butchers and restaurants as well as individuals.
Why does locally raised meat matter?
First of all, it gives the opportunity to meet the meat, so to speak. We can ask questions of our farmers, visit, and support our own state economy and agriculture. We do not have to rely on faceless certifiers to tell us our food is kosher, treated well, or healthy. We minimize use of unsustainable resources like oil by having shorter distances to bring your food to you. It will be fresher. It is a way of using your food dollars to vote for better treatment of animals raised for food, supporting small-scale farmers dedicated to raising their animals well, and to protest horrendous living conditions of CAFO-raised animals.
For more info, check out Barbara Kingsolver’s book Animal Vegetable Miracle.
How will the cattle be shechted?
In consultation with Professor Temple Grandin and her writings on ethical animal slaughter and shechita, which was developed with the Orthodox Union as well, we have developed a method by which cows can be slaughtered in a more humane upright position that is halachically permitted.
Our method incorporates the following principles of Temple Grandin:
*To have solid sides or barriers around the cattle to prevent them from seeing people deep inside their flight zones. This is especially important for wild or excitable cattle.
*To prevent lunging at the headgate, the bovine's view of an escape pathway must be blocked until it is fully restrained.
*Provide non-slip flooring.
*Slow steady motion of a restraint device in an effort to be calming, as sudden jerky motion excites.
*Use the concept of optimal pressure. Sufficient pressure must be applied to provide the feeling of restraint, but excessive pressure that causes pain or discomfort will be avoided.
*The entrance of the restraint device will be well lighted without glare into the eyes of approaching animals. The animal must be able to see a place to go.
*Other animals ideally will be within touching distance until the animal is restrained.
*Equipment engineered to minimize noise.
*Restraint devices designed to avoid uncomfortable pressure points on the animal's body.
*Livestock will be restrained in an upright position. Live animals will never be hoisted by heads, feet or legs.
*Once restrained, shechita will occur within 10 seconds in order to minimize animal distress over restraint.
*Our shochets will be specially trained and committed to performing shechita in as painless and humane a way as possible to the animal. A skilled shochet should be able to induce over 90% of the cattle to lose sensibility within 10 seconds of shechita.
We will continually reassess our process by using Temple Grandin’s published criteria for animal distress and make changes as needed.
If you care so much about the suffering of the animal, why not become a vegetarian?
In fact, some of the participants in this project (including myself!) have been or currently are vegetarians. As a physician, I realize that there are certain benefits to eating meat products, however, and that not everyone in the Jewish community is going to become vegetarian. For this reason, we aim to create a supply of meat for those people who eat meat but also deeply care about the life and death of the cow (in addition to the very important health and taste benefits). However, we support anyone who chooses to become a vegetarian.
