Measuring the Phytochemical Richness of Meat: Effects of Grass/Grain Finishing Systems and Grapeseed Extract Supplementation on the Fatty Acid and Phytochemical Content of Beef

Authors

Lucas Krusinski, Michigan State UniversityFollow
Isabella C. F. Maciel, Michigan State UniversityFollow
Stephan van Vliet, Utah State UniversityFollow
Muhammad Ahsin, Utah State UniversityFollow
Guanqi Lu, Michigan State UniversityFollow
Jason E. Rowntree, Michigan State UniversityFollow
Jenifer I. Fenton, Michigan State UniversityFollow

Document Type

Article

Journal/Book Title/Conference

Foods

Author ORCID Identifier

Lucas Krusinski https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7387-3839

Muhammad Ahsin https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9990-0863

Jenifer I. Fenton https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8875-3239

Volume

12

Issue

19

Publisher

MDPI AG

Publication Date

9-24-2023

First Page

1

Last Page

20

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Abstract

Grass-finished beef (GFB) can provide beneficial bioactive compounds to healthy diets, including omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFAs), conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), and secondary bioactive compounds, such as phytochemicals. The objective of this study was to compare fatty acids (FAs), micronutrients, and phytochemicals of beef fed a biodiverse pasture (GRASS), a total mixed ration (GRAIN), or a total mixed ration with 5% grapeseed extract (GRAPE). This was a two-year study involving fifty-four Red Angus steers (n = 54). GFB contained higher levels of n-3 PUFAs, vitamin E, iron, zinc, stachydrine, hippuric acid, citric acid, and succinic acid than beef from GRAIN and GRAPE (p < 0.001 for all). No differences were observed in quantified phytochemicals between beef from GRAIN and GRAPE (p > 0.05). Random forest analysis indicated that phytochemical and FA composition of meat can predict cattle diets with a degree of certainty, especially for GFB (5.6% class error). In conclusion, these results indicate that GFB contains higher levels of potentially beneficial bioactive compounds, such as n-3 PUFAs, micronutrients, and phytochemicals, compared to grain-finished beef. Additionally, the n-6:n-3 ratio was the most crucial factor capable of separating beef based on finishing diets.

Recommended Citation

Krusinski, L.; Maciel, I.C.F.; van Vliet, S.; Ahsin, M.; Lu, G.; Rowntree, J.E.; Fenton, J.I. Measuring the Phytochemical Richness of Meat: Effects of Grass/Grain Finishing Systems and Grapeseed Extract Supplementation on the Fatty Acid and Phytochemical Content of Beef. Foods 2023, 12, 3547. https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12193547