Lets talk about fat!

For years we have been taught to believe that fat is a bad thing. That is how lean, commodity pork became marketed as “the other white meat”, we’ll get into that later on. Fat is said to cause high cholesterol, leads to obesity and heart failure and all the other bad things that can happen to the body. Let us set the record straight, not all fat is the same. Different fats cause different reactions in the body. Less than 7% of your total daily calories should come from saturated fats. Less than 1% should come from trans fats. In a 2,000-calorie daily diet, that is less than 15 grams of saturated fat and less than 2 grams of trans fat. These fats come from processed foods, vegetable oils, shortening and more. An important thing to consider when eating meat of any kind is how your meat was fed. We all know the saying “we are what we eat” but the correct saying should be “we are what our food eats”. 99% of all mass-produced meats in our country are primarily fed corn. Feeding livestock on corn fundamentally changes the meat they produce, greatly increasing levels of unhealthy Omega-6 fatty acids and decreasing levels of healthy Omega-3 fatty acids. This change greatly impacts the healthiness of meat for human consumption. If you want to be healthy you must be aware of your meals diet and raising methods. Corn is so popular with large producers because its cheap and it is a great source of carbohydrates and increases intramuscular fat (aka marbling). For the better part of 20 years, I have said the same thing to folks when they show me a highly marbled piece of meat with pride. “What’s that fat made of?” I get the same blank look every single time, if that look was worth money, I could have retired a long time ago! I then give the answer, “Corn…Corn not only produces unhealthy fat, but it imparts zero flavor in meat, the only thing your meat will taste like is the seasoning you sprinkled on top”. Earlier I mentioned “the other white meat”, the real reason commercial pork is white is because the hogs never saw the light of day and therefore contain extremely low levels of vitamin D (vitamin D gives a red color to meat) and were fed a steady diet of pulverized corn mixed with water and antibiotics. The term “white meat” should be celebrated by no one. At Red Field Ranch our hogs are pasture raised and fed a healthy diet of native grasses, sunflower seed, rice, milo, barley, acorns, and various carbohydrates to promote marbling. These varied grains and grasses all impart flavor and character to the meat and set it apart from a typical grocery store meat purchase. So, lets recap…fat is good if it is the right fat. The right fats contain so many benefits such as, myristic acid which is essential for many cellular signaling brain pathways and 60% of the human brain is fat, with some parts composed of more than 80% fat. The healthy fat we get from animals nourishes these areas of the brain and keeps us healthy overall. Fat derived from complex diets literally makes the meat taste better. Finally fat helps break up muscle tissue and naturally tenderized the meat. Theres no contest when Red Field Ranch is involved in your meal planning. Be well and make eating an occasion every time!