Sustainable beef is defined as a socially responsible, environmentally sound and economically viable product that prioritizes the planet, people, animals and progress. This means that farmers and ranchers, processors and everyone in the supply chain who is involved in bringing beef to your table are dedicated to conserving the land, water & air, raising animals responsibly, caring for our families and communities, and embracing technology and innovation grounded in science to make improvements.

The  Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef  completed a National Beef Sustainability Assessment that measured the sustainability performance of Canadian beef . For example, we know that the greenhouse gas footprint of Canadian beef production is less than half of the global average, that beef production stores 1.5 billion tonnes of carbon in Canadian soil, and helps provide two-thirds of the wildlife habitat on only one-third of Canada’s agricultural land. Learn more on our Benchmarks page.

The report also identified key areas through which a strategy has been set to make improvements in the sustainability of Canadian beef. A series of 2030 Goals for the beef industry have also been established
across seven diverse areas of focus.

Because you care! By purchasing CRSB Certified beef, you send the message that you are supporting sustainable beef production, continuous improvement and all the people involved in bringing it to your table.

There are several companies now sourcing beef sourced from beef operations certified to CRSB standards. Find out where.

It’s simple. To survive and thrive, grasslands need grazing animals. Canadian rangelands are home to over 1,000 plants, animal and insects. Grazing cattle on landscapes like the prairies duplicate what the bison did on the same land for hundreds and thousands of years.

Functions of these landscapes include wildlife habitat, carbon sequestration, and utilization of land that is unsuitable for other food production. Preserving them is key to conserving habitat for those species, and grazing cattle raised by Canadian ranchers is part of the solution.

Cattle are a natural part of the biogenic carbon cycle, their unique digestive system, with 4 stomachs, uses a combination of microorganisms to break down plant material. Cattle emit methane (CH₄ ) as a by-product of digestion, which then enters the atmosphere. As methane is a short-lived gas, after 10-12 years it breaks down into CO₂ and is utilized by plants during photosynthesis, a vital process for plant health. Carbon is then stored by the plants in their leaves, stem and roots, until a grazer comes along, like cattle, consumes the carbon, and starts the cycle over again. This carbon storage helps preserve over 1.5 billion tonnes of carbon with the help of grazing beef cattle.

Due to the short-lived nature of methane, and a sustainable beef production system like we have in Canada, the amount of methane emitted is lower than that being broken down, meaning methane from beef cattle is destroyed at a rate faster than it is being produced.

Source Canadian Cattle Association: The Biogenic Carbon Cycle and Cattle | CLEAR Center (ucdavis.edu)

Sustainable practices are about how the cattle are raised, rather than specific product attributes like these.  Production practices differ across the many diverse landscapes and farm operations in Canada and there are benefits and challenges with each. The CRSB aims to recognize good production practices and make improvements across all types of production systems.