Yes we use them…and here is why.
Our cattle come to us after spending most of their lives in green pastures. We typically “finish” our cattle as grain fed for anywhere from 120 to 200 days.
At a young age bull calves are often castrated, which means they become steers. Just as we neuter our dogs, it’s because at times their behavior can be harmful. Because we neuter the bulls we often lose that natural male hormone that only bulls can produce. This hormone makes them grow faster and produce more muscle. Heifers, in turn, also produce hormones, but not nearly as quickly as if they were older or pregnant.
We give small amounts of the hormones to steers and heifers to “regain some of the growth rate of bulls and older heifers”. And when I say small, I do mean small. Check out this chart to see how small I really mean.
|
Item
|
Estrogen Amount
|
|
Pregnant woman
|
19,600,000 ng/day
|
|
Non-pregnant woman
|
513,000 ng/day
|
|
Adult man
|
136,000 ng/day
|
|
Pre-puberal children
|
41,000 ng/day
|
|
500 g of beef from implanted cattle
|
7 ng
|
Hoffman and Eversol (1986)
We implant our cattle in their ears (ears are not used for human consumption). In the 120 to 200 days of being grain fed the hormone is gradually released to the animal until the implant itself disintegrates.
Another bad rap the beef industry gets is that eating beef is causing young girls to go into puberty much quicker because of the estrogen content. Check out the chart below and you might start seeing it differently.
|
Food
|
Estrogenic Content
|
|
Soy flour defatted
|
755,000,000
|
|
Pinto beans
|
900,000
|
|
Cake donuts
|
2,600,000
|
|
Peanuts
|
100,000
|
|
White bread
|
300,000
|
|
Eggs
|
555
|
|
Milk
|
32
|
|
Butter
|
310
|
|
Beef from implanted steer
|
7
|
|
Beef from non-implanted steer
|
5
|
Hoffman and Eversol (1986), Hartman et al (1998), Shore and Shemesh (2003), USDA-ARS (2002).
Units are nanograms of estrone plus estradiol for animal products and isoflavones for plant products
per 500 grams of food.
Units are nanograms of estrone plus estradiol for animal products and isoflavones for plant products
per 500 grams of food.
As farmers we strive to provide a safe and wholesome product.
By implanting I believe we are producing beef safely, as well as efficiently, so we can feed the world.
Hi! It was so fantastic to meet you! I’m really enjoying reading your blog as well. Thank you for sharing it with me. Lookomh forward to reading more.
Hey Michelle! It was great to meet you too! Thanks for following too!
Fabulous content and information. I’m a new follower…and live on the prairie just 50 miles north of the state line…as in North Dakota.
Katie
Katie- Glad to hear you are following my blog! How did you come across it?
And PS. Thanks for following! I am glad you are enjoying it.
Growth Hormones play an important role in the body fitness. This hormone makes them grow faster and produce more muscle. Heifers, in turn, also produce hormones, but not nearly as quickly as if they were older or pregnant.
Thanks for posting Tim! If you check out under ‘See The Source’ on the right side you will see the article I pulled some of the statistics from. You seem like you are a growth hormone person so you will probably find it really interesting! Thanks!