This day and age more people seem to be finding out that venison is more beneficial and fiscally responsible than eating beef. With the cost of beef on the rise, and the scandals of how some slaughterhouses operate, some may think that choosing venison is the obvious choice. I would have to agree. Are you unsure? Looking for a reason to join the bandwagon and give beef the boot? Well then you have come to the right place.
I used to eat beef. There was a day when I would have to go to the store and buy a pound of meat that I really had no clue where it came from. Man, I don’t miss those days at all. I met my boyfriend a couple of years ago, and have not bought an ounce of beef since.
I always just saw meat as meat, never really thought too much about venison vs beef. Now that I am more conscious of where my food comes from, I realize just how much better venison is than beef. If you are anything like me, you can’t tell the difference in deer meat and cow meat. There are some, however, that can’t stand deer meat and refuse to eat it. It has never bothered me, and when it comes to ground burger I honestly can not find a difference in the two.
I do know some people that are strictly beef eaters. They will not even try venison. To each their own, I guess. In some people’s opinion, venison and/or other game tastes too “gamey”. An idea to solve that problem is to mix your venison with beef. Some people think that venison is a little dry on its own, so this would help with that problem as well.
How is deer meat better than beef, you ask? Well, let’s go over that a little bit. There are a few reasons why venison is more beneficial for your health than beef.
Venison Is Healthier Than Beef
This is a fact. Did you know that deer meat is one of the leanest meats you can eat? 4 ounces of beef has about 9 grams of fat, 4 of them being saturated fat. The same size serving of venison has a mere 3 grams of fat, only 1 of them saturated. Saturated fat raises the amount of cholesterol in your blood, increasing your risk of heart disease or heart attack. That is reason enough for me to kick beef to the curb.
Venison also has more protein, iron and Vitamin B2 than beef AND it has less calories, fat and carbohydrates. So, if you are on a diet venison is definitely the way to go. I believe venison blows beef out of the water.
Venison Is Cheaper Than Beef
This is a HUGE reason why I am so glad I don’t have to buy beef anymore. It is insanely expensive! The cost of beef is on a steady increase with no end in sight. One pound of beef costs around $5.00! This fall, we got a deer that we made only into ground burger. We got about 90 pounds of ground burger, and paid around $250 for the deer tag and meat processing costs. That adds up to about $2.78 a pound. That’s about half the price of beef!
Please note: That price for venison is mainly payment for getting the deer butchered and ground. If you choose to do it like some of my relatives, you just do it all yourself and save about $2.56 a pound. That would bring the total cost to about $30, which is around the cost of a license for a resident in MN. That would make the burger $0.22 a pound. WHAT?! That is nuts. For those who may go all out on trips across the country to go on a guided hunt, the price will be way more. It just depends on how you choose to hunt.
On top of that, the convenience factor of going out to the garage to get a pound of burger, rather than having to run to the grocery store is priceless. Sure, we may be limited on freezer space for most of the year, but we manage to get by!
Venison Is More Natural Than Most Beef
Pretty much any ground beef you buy in a store came from some not so cleanly environments. Unless you buy local, grass fed beef, there’s a good chance that your meat is pumped full of chemicals. The cows don’t live in the most humane conditions either. When it comes to venison, the deer are in their natural environment. They aren’t being fed a bunch of growth hormones, and roam freely eating natural foods.
When we bring our deer to the meat processor, we walk in the door where we can see everything they are doing. It’s a big wide open room and people in the back end are butchering the meat. I like seeing that and knowing the process my food goes through. Can you say the same about the beef you are eating? I dare you to look it up – that may be reason enough for you to jump ship right then and there.
Its Better For The Environment
If you are comparing the two, it is way more beneficial for the environment if you consume deer. By hunting, you are contributing to the necessary control of deer population. In some areas the population of deer have become way out of control. It is better to put the money in your tag, which in Minnesota for example, a chunk of the proceeds go back into the environment. Buying beef you are only continuing to support an industry that doesn’t necessarily need to be supported. I think that many people would be better off by eating venison rather than beef from large slaughter houses.
It is very important for the deer population to be controlled. And what better way? I have been one of many to witness a downside of overpopulation in deer. Deer and car collisions are at very high numbers. While it may not sound so dangerous, it is. People have died after their vehicle has struck a deer.
Relaxation
For some, deer hunting is a way of life. For my boyfriend, it is his life. All year long he dreams of fall, and when it comes around it is almost like watching a kid in a candy store. This is true for many other people as well. Getting out to hunt for your food is also a way to wind down and catch a break from the noisy busy life you may live outside of hunting. It is a way to become one with nature, and if you’re lucky you may get to come face to face with many of God’s great creatures. If you are on the farm in Minnesota, you are bound to come across a coyote or two. And hey, maybe that’s an extra bonus, because at one time there was a bounty on coyotes, meaning the DNR would pay you to shoot coyotes. Make money while out hunting? Doesn’t get much better than that!
For some, hunting may be the perfect “therapy”. It’s much cheaper than going to an actual therapist, that’s for sure! I have always been one to love going outside for therapeutic reasons. Not much beats being out with nature and having peace and quiet to get your thoughts in order and just relax. Even if you may not see much, I am sure that you will feel better when the day is over regardless.
In order for me to write a fair article, I have to go over some of the cons as well. While most of the cons that can be thought of in regards to venison vs. beef are mere opinions, they are worth mentioning as well.
Convenience Factor
While for some of us, deer hunting is a ritual we do every year, it may not be that way for some. Some of us have family owned land we can hunt on, while others may not. Yes, there is public land that people are allowed to hunt, but some may not be aware of this. Many people may not be like my boyfriend and have many more guns than humanly necessary. Maybe some people just don’t have the patience to sit outside, quiet all day only to possibly not see a single thing and go home empty handed.
Also, if you don’t do it regularly and have all of the needed equipment/resources for hunting it may be a little unrealistic for you to rely on hunting for your sole meat source.
For those of you that I just described, beef would most likely be the preferred meat for you.
Gamey Taste
I briefly went over this earlier. Some people can tell the difference in venison and beef right away. If you are like me, you can’t tell the difference at all. Honestly! Maybe it’s because I am so used to venison by now, but really it tastes the same to me. In fact, my boyfriend is even surprised that I eat it plain, with no seasonings at all. With that being said some can take one bite and know its definitely not beef. Like I mentioned above, you can mix beef and venison together however you want, whether it be 50/50 or 80/20 and that is likely to solve that problem.
Another solution to this is how you prepare the meat. Sure, if you have it plain maybe you will be able to taste a difference, but if you use everyday recipes with venison you may not. For example, simple things like spaghetti or tacos you probably won’t notice a difference considering the spices and sauces used.
If you can’t get past the potential “gamey” taste of venison, then beef may be for you.
Potential Risks
Some people steer clear of venison because they have been scared away by hearing of diseases like Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) and Lyme Disease. What they don’t know is that it is highly unlikely that a deer can pass on the disease to the human by being consumed. While I will never say never, it has yet to happen for a human to contract CWD from eating a deer. With that being said, it is not recommended to consume a deer that has tested positive for the disease. Beef, also can come with risks. Everyone has heard of Mad Cow Disease by now, and if not cooked properly the risk of E. Coli is there in beef as well.
Some helpful hints to give yourself a peace of mind is to handle it with care. Try not to cut into the organs such as intestines where the most bacteria are. Avoid cutting into the spinal and brain tissue, which is most likely to be contaminated if the deer were infected with CWD. Just check your deer over and if something looks or smells off, get it checked out and tested if it makes you feel better.
This one is a draw. Just like anything in life, there are potential risks.
Final Thoughts
Many of the downsides are just based on personal preference. No one here is trying to force you to switch to venison, but the benefits are definitely facts. Especially considering how many people are finding it more and more important for them to eat organic, this is as organic as it comes.
Well there you have it. I guess you can say I am a bit biased. Maybe it is because I choose to feed my family the venison hunted on my family’s land. I like knowing exactly where my meat came from, and that it is just about as organic and natural as you can get. I like knowing that my burger was living in it’s natural environment, and that it was harvested humanely. It was not living in filthy, cruel conditions like you will find in the livestock industry. To me it’s a hands down win for the deer today.
For more benefits of eating venison check out: 27 Benefits of Harvesting & Eating Wild Venison: A Look at Venison vs Beef
What about you? Do you have any specific reasons you do or don’t eat venison? Share your opinion with us below!
