Al ine of value-added products from the Manitoba grass-fed beef producers is expected to hit store shelves in Winnipeg this month when Vita Health’s Fresh Market stores begin carrying a line of sausages, meat pies and a specialty paté at its six locations.
The Manitoba Grass Fed Beef Association (MGFBA) has been working for over a year to develop these products for market, said Jim Lintott, an Oakbank MGFBA member who has been raising cattle on grass since 2004.
These products, the first MGFBA-sanctioned grass-fed beef products to reach store shelves, were developed by Winnipeg chef Helmut Mathae at the Louis Riel School of Arts and Technology in Winnipeg. They include a saskatoon berry and wine paté, made with ground beef, a sausage of a similar recipe plus a dill sausage and individual- serving meat pies.
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Until now, the six MFGBA producers around Manitoba have individually direct marketed their production to consumers or restaurants. The total number of animals owned among MFGBA remains small, estimated at around 1,000 head.
However, Lintott, who has also marketed grass-fed beef at the St. Norbert Farmers’ Market, says the group is confident it now has enough animals between its members to begin marketing as a group.
“We’re at the point where enough of us have enough grass-fed beef production on our farms that we can safely chase a market like Vita Health and know that we have enough supply between us all,” he said.
The products will be produced at various locations around Manitoba including at meat shops in Steinbach, Starbuck and Oakbank.
Lintott said it’s evident there’s more demand than supply for grass-fed beef, which appeals to consumers as a hormone-and antibiotic-free beef raised on pasture.
One of the biggest challenges has been lack of supply, said Bragi Simmundson, another MGFBA member at Arborg. Other producers
interested in raising grass fed have been waiting for markets to develop, he said.
“People are interested, but no one’s willing to produce a product until the market is there,” he said. “It’s been a challenge to co-ordinate market development with the availability of the product.”
Lintott added that these new products make good use of lower-end cuts of meat.
“We have had overwhelming demand for the high-end products like steaks, but it’s what to do with the lower-quality cuts,” he said. “We needed to find a solution to that.”
The grass-fed beef herd is under development in Manitoba as producers continue to select for smaller-framed, easy-fleshing animals that fatten on grass.
The MGFBA hopes the availability of its new products will raise awareness among consumers and create more demand for grass-fed beef, said Simmundson.
Producers have been raising grass-fed beef at least 15 years in Manitoba. In 2007 a group of producers, processors, butchers, retailers, chefs and restaurant owners launched the association to develop a value chain for grass-fed beef. Since then a product ion protocol that includes that the animal’s diet must be 100 per cent forage from weanling to slaughter has been developed.
The MGFBA’s saskatoon berry and meat pie product will be one of the featured items at the Great Manitoba Food Fight at Captur ing Opportunities in Brandon this week.
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“We’reatthepointwhereenoughofus haveenoughgrass-fedbeefproduction onourfarmsthatwecansafelychasea marketlikeVitaHealthandknowthatwe haveenoughsupplybetweenusall.”
– JIM LINTOTT, MGFBA MEMBER
