Quote:
Originally Posted by chesapeake
We have a Whole Foods nearby, and their standard meat is without hormones or antibiotics. I think you can get organic beef from most grocery stores now, and the USDA organic standards say no growth hormones and no antibiotics.
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Ugh. I don't want to threadjack here, nor do I want to tell you how to feed your children but allow me to educate you on a few things I know as somebody who produces food put into the food supply. Then I'll be on my merry way.
Every single animal that goes into the food supply is tested for trace amounts of antibiotics. EVERY single one. Farmers that send cattle that test positive for antibiotics are essentially blacklisted from selling their cattle by the government. If you buy meat with trace antibiotics in it, you probably bought it from the trunk of somebody's car.
Hormones are another issue. First, all meat has hormones in it. There's no way around it. The particular hormones that are added to promote growth in cattle are used because the cattle get their balls lopped off at a young age and can't produce the natural growth hormones. So if you don't want any added hormones to your meat, then you don't want to eat a non-castrated bull because it's the same exact thing. Either way, your stomach acids break down bovine proteins so they don't have any effect anyway. Same goes for hormone free milk.
It's a marketing ploy to get people to pay more for the same thing. Now don't take this as me saying don't eat organic or hormone free stuff. I just wouldn't pay more for it thinking I'm getting a better product. I'd take a good organic steak over a piece of rubber you can pick up at Wal-Mart.
My overall point is that organic does not necessarily mean better. The marketing behind the organic movement would like you to think so. But there's no sound science behind any of this. I'll take a well produced local product regardless of antibiotic or hormone usage.