What makes grain-fed beef different from grass-fed beef is the four to six-month period cattle spend at a feed yard eating a diet of grains, feed from potato hulls or sugar beets, and hay or forage.

Despite a growing demand for grass-fed beef, the vast majority of beef cattle in the U.S. (about 95%) are still fed a grain-heavy diet. The grain feed provides cattle with a surplus of energy that ...

Also, grass-fed beef has up to six times more heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids than regular grain-fed beef. Many people also believe grass-fed beef to be a more humane option.

Grass-fed beef tends to have less total fat compared to grain-fed beef, meaning it also has fewer calories per gram. However, the types of fatty acids present differ significantly between the two.

Counterpoint: Grain-fed or grass-fed, beef is a good choice. There are many different production choices in raising cattle, but you can choose which you prefer. By John Schafer.

Oklahoma State University meat scientist Gretchen Mafi has studied the scientific differences between beef that comes from animals finished on a grain diet versus those animals finished on grass.

“Grass-fed beef usually contains less total fat than grain-fed beef, which means that gram for gram, grass-fed beef contains fewer calories,” Healthline states.

Grass-fed cattle are slower to put on fat, so they are typically butchered, or “finished off” between 24 and 30 months, while grain-fed cattle are butchered at 14 to 16 months of age.