Grass Fed Butter is Better!

As I delve more deeply into the world of real & traditional foods, I am learning so many interesting things. For instance, which butter is best? Now, my relationship with butter has been rocky over the last few years. I am pretty sure we ate real butter when I was a kid (and by real I mean normal butter from grain fed cows -- not fake butter like margarine). Then about 5 years ago, I somehow got it into my head that a fake butter like Earth Balance would be better. No doubt due to the food bureaucracies telling me that animal fats are bad, blah blah blah. Earth balance is a blend of oils, including soybean oil and even crushed soybeans.

Soy is not our friend. I'm not going to get into all the nitty gritty of why soy is unhealthy, but I will just briefly say that it is a phyto-estrogen, meaning it messes with hormone levels, and can even disrupt normal thyroid and endocrine function. (!!)

Anyhow, (stepping off soapbox), after reading Real Food and Nourishing Traditions and the work of Weston A. Price, I realize that I had it all wrong when it came to my beloved butter. It is NOT bad for you! At least not all of it. Normal butter that you find in the store comes from grain fed cows who are not raised in the best of conditions (see Food, Inc. yet? Ya need to!). This butter is not the best you can find.

On the other hand, grass fed butter comes from cows that are, well, fed grass. This results in a myriad of health benefits to the butter eater, including a higher content of CLA (a good fat), more Omega 3's (another good fat) and less Omega 6's (a not so good fat), higher nutrient content of Vitamins A, E, and K2, as well as Beta Kerotene. It also tastes better! Why yes, it does!

I was so happy to find out that Trader Joe's, my weekly grocery haunt, carries grass fed butter from Ireland called Kerrygold!! It is cheap (2.69 per package, which is about 2 sticks of butter), and delicious! And I can slather it all over my food guilt free, knowing that I am eating tasty AND healthy food!

So go grab some grass fed butter and enjoy!

Find out more about grass fed butter:
Mark's Daily Apple
Eat Wild
BullzEye - This has an impressive list of butter benefits.