At Maverick Ranch, we know beef! Here are a few surprising "myths" about beef and beef production.

MYTH - Cattle are fed daily doses of low level antibiotics - especially penicillin.

FACT - It is illegal in the U.S. for penicillin to be used in low-level doses in the feed. Penicillin may be used by injection, in concentrated doses, if the animal is sick or has a fever. Typically, this takes one or two doses. This animal cannot be harvested within a certain period to insure there are no residues in its system. We estimate that less than 1% of cattle have ever had any doses of penicillin. The national Cattleman's Beef Association has conducted a successful campaign over the last 5 years which has nearly eliminated the use of tetracycline in cattle feed. A recent survey in cattle feeding articles shows that all major feedlots had discontinued use of tetracycline.

MYTH - Natural and Organic beef have no hormones.

FACT - All plants and animals produce naturally occurring hormones that are essential to life. Humans produce over 100 known hormones. SOURCE: "Enter the Zone" by Barry Sears, Ph. D.

MYTH - Cattle are pumped full of artificial hormones called steroids.

FACT - About half the beef in the U.S. have received a small implant at the base of the ear. This implant simulates the natural endocrine system allowing the animal to grow more muscle (protein) and less fat. The process only increases the estrogen content of steer beef from 1.3 nanograms to 1.9 nanograms. Compare this to a vegetable such as a potato that has 245 nanograms of estrogen per 3.5 oz. serving. This is insignificant when we consider a pregnant woman produces 20,000,000 nanograms of estrogen per day. An adult male produces 68,000 nanograms of estrogen daily ( A nanogram is one billionth of a gram). Maverick Ranch Beef is from cattle that are free of synthetic hormone residues, and we test to prove our claims.

MYTH - We can't do anything about aging.

FACT - As humans age, their endocrine system produces less estrogen and testosterone. The natural hormones decline with age. This loss creates thinner skin, weaker bones, aging spots, memory loss, graying hair and reduces sex drive. Octogenarians have a longer natural hormone production. It is now a proven fact that women who take estrogen replacement therapy during and after menopause have a 2-year longer lifespan than those who do not take estrogen. Hormone replacement therapy is evolving as an accepted medical practice and the potential is many more years of healthful life. SOURCE: "The Superhormone Promise" by Dr. William Regelson, M.D. and Carol Colman

MYTH - Cattle that receive "growth promotants" have high levels of hormones.

FACT - To answer this question, we would like to quote Dr. Gary Smith Ph.D., who is acknowledged as one of the world's best known meat scientists. Dr. Smith is the former head of the Meat Science Department at Texas A &M and currently holds an endowed chair at Colorado State University. "The amount of natural hormones in the meat we consume is a tiny fraction of what our own bodies produces naturally. A man's body produces 15,000 times the amount of estrogen, daily, than he can get from 1 lb. of beef while a pregnant woman's body produces several million times that amount."

MYTH - Ionophores are antibiotics.

FACT - The most prevalent ionophores are monensin, and Iasolocid. These are classed as a parasiticide, not an antibiotic. They are used to eliminate coccidia. Parasite control is necessary for the health of the animal and to prevent internal parasites. Another function of these ionophores is to improve the digestion of the animal. Cattle are ruminants and have 4 compartments in their stomach. Cellulose is broken down by action of gram negative microflora. Ionophores change the propionic and acetic acid balance and actually enhance many of these "good" bacteria. SOURCE: USDA Department of Chemistry
Click here for more information about Ionophores.

MYTH - Large-scale antibiotic use in cattle is responsible for bacterial resistance in humans.

FACT - Most antibiotics used on humans aren't approved for animal use. The majority of bacterial resistance is thought to be caused by too much casual use by physicians. However, there are 3 bacteria in cattle that cause food poisoning in humans - salmonella, camplobacter, and E-coli 0157:H7. There are an estimated 2400 strains of salmonella in the world. Some strains of these bacteria have developed resistance to some tetracycline's and sulfas. Maverick Ranch has joined a campaign that is designed to reduce or eliminate the use of sulfas, and tetracycline's, even for the use of emergency treatment in livestock. Some bacteria in humans and cattle have developed a high resistance to tetracycline's and sulfas. Maverick Ranch Beef guarantees you antibiotic free beef so the danger of building antibiotic resistance or experiencing an allergic reaction is reduced if not eliminated. The Center for Disease Control is monitoring bacterial resistance so that physicians and veterinarians alike can use this information to treat infections and reduce the rate of growth of microbial resistance. Today, physicians use databases on resistance and would not use tetracycline to treat salmonella food poisoning because of the resistance already developed by numerous strains to tetracycline. Over the past 8 years, the National Cattlemen's Beef Association has conducted a successful campaign to eliminate the use of tetracycline in cattle feed.

MYTH - "Organic" beef has no residues from pesticides.

FACT - Some of the 26 independent organic certifying agencies allow pesticide use directly on the animal externally or internally. At Maverick Ranch, we feel the only way to eliminate problems caused by this necessary practice is to test our beef and eliminate those with any detectable residues from pesticides. Humans and animals can pick up chemical contaminants from air, water, food, rain and snow or by direct contact. Testing in a laboratory is the only way to detect unknown exposures.

MYTH - Primary pesticides exposure for cattle is through the feed that cattle eat.

FACT - Over 99% of all beef (including other producer's natural beef) has had direct internal or external application of pesticides to control internal and external parasites. Many of these pesticides are artificial estrogens (hormones) and are even stronger than growth implants! Another group of pesticides, called Organo Phosphates, were developed as nerve gas by Germany during World War II. They are now used in smaller concentrations as pesticides worldwide. Maverick Ranch is the only red meat company in the world that we feel truly addresses the pesticide issue by testing our beef and removing beef where misuse of pesticides in animals or impaired metabolism has resulted in a residue in the meat. Click on Pesticide Facts or Shocking Health Science to discover the true surprising facts. We believe other meat companies that talk only about antibiotics and steroids while ignoring the direct application of pesticides have in fact created a misconception about food safety. We believe our testing system is the only way to bring you the safest, most healthful meat products in the marketplace.

MYTH - Natural beef companies that claim the have never used Steroids in their production practices are usually telling the truth.

FACT - All cattle producers use pesticide direct application to the cattle as a necessary eradication step in controlling internal parasites such as blood and tape worms and external parasites such as face flies, mosquitoes and lice. Many of the pesticides used on cattle are endocrine interruptors. They often have the same effect as steroids in that they either block, mimic, or add to the natural hormone production. Maverick Ranch believes that a residue testing program is the best way of selecting beef that has no detectable level of Steroid-like Pesticides that could influence your natural hormone production.

If you have any further questions about Maverick Ranch Natural Beef or just beef in general, please e-mail us!