Beef (or lamb) raised and finished entirely on pasture and forage, never grain. Different from "grass-fed" which requires only partial pasture.
Grass-finished means the animal ate only grass, forage, and hay from birth to slaughter — no grain, no corn, no soy, no feedlot finishing. The distinction matters because "grass-fed" is a near-meaningless label in the US: every cow eats grass at some point, and the USDA allows "grass-fed" on a label even when the animal was grain-finished for its last 6 months.
Grass-finished beef is leaner (less marbling), redder (more beta-carotene), and has a higher omega-3 : omega-6 ratio than grain-finished. It also takes 24-30 months to reach finish weight vs 14-18 months on grain, making it more expensive.
Finish age
Grass-finished steer: 26 months. Grain-finished: 16 months.
Marbling grade
Grass-finished typically grades Select or low Choice; grain often hits Choice or Prime.
Marbling
Intramuscular fat flecks inside a muscle — drives flavor, juiciness, and USDA quality grade.
Organic Certification
USDA Organic label requires 3 years of organic soil management, no synthetic pesticides, no GMOs, and third-party annual audit.
CSA
Community Supported Agriculture — members pay up-front for a share of a farm's harvest, delivered weekly through a season.