I am a third generation Texas cattleman. Earlier generations of the family raised cattle on their farms before immigrating to Texas from Russia or moving from Kentucky. I know more about my grandfathers' lives than those that came before them. I do know that all of my famly for many generations were farmers and ranchers. There is a photo in my office taken on a ranch near Wichita Falls, Texas, around 1900 with my grandfather on horseback on a bluff overlooking hundreds of red and white Herford cattle. These cattle were raised only on grass, no grain, and when fat and ready for market, they were was loaded into rail cars and sent to Fort Worth to be sold into the commercial beef market. Some were slaughtered in Fort Worth in the large Swift plant, but most went north to St. Louis, Kansas City and Chicago. In those days, there was the rancher, the railroads and the stockyards leading to a slaughter plant close to the major population centers.

After World War II, there was a surplus of grain. An easy way to get rid of it was to build single purpose facilities (feedlots) to raise animals to consume it. These factory farms changed everything. Cattle were no longer finished on grass pastures and sent to city distribution centers, but instead they went to very large feedlots close to where grain was produced. Near these feedlots, new slaughter plants were built. All of this happened not so long ago. The first cattle feed lot was built in West Texas in 1955. Factory farms to raise hogs and chickens also started to appear on the American landscape. This was the turning point where beef and other meats moved from being healthy to being something less than healthy because of how they were raised and what they were fed. There are well-documented problems with grain-fed animals. Northwestern Health Sciences University has an interesting web article expanding on this.

The way many believe cattle are raised (based in part on western movies) has changed dramatically in the last 50 years. "Producers at the beginning of the beef cycle – ranchers – were moving away from consolidation. Some of the largest historic ranches were split up in the 1950s. Originally, these huge ranches in the West would breed the cattle, raise the calves and even finish them on vast expanses of grassland. But as the nation's tastes demanded grain fed beef, more and more ranchers were relegated to the breeding alone. Most ranchers ended up selling yearling calves to other feeders. Other ranchers sold out. Of the 70,000 ranches in 1945, about 10,000 went out of business by 1980. That's a higher rate of survival than the nation's mixed farming operations – since 58 percent of the farms sold out during that period – but some of the largest and best-known ranches were among the casualties. For example, the Matador Land and Cattle Company had been set up in 1882 and ran 50,000 head of purebred Hereford cattle on 1.5 million acres, mostly in Texas. In 1951, the company was liquidated, the land divided up and the assets sold. Other large ranches, like the fabled King Ranch in Texas, survived largely because of their oil revenues." Source: Bill Ganzel, 2007.

The advent of factory farms also changed the environment in ways not considered pleasant. "You can smell Greeley, Colorado, long before you can see it. The smell is hard to forget, but not easy to describe, a combination of live animals, manure and dead animals being rendered into dog food. The smell is worst during the summer months, hanging heavy in the warm air, almost assuming a physical presence, blanketing Greeley day and night. Some people who live there no longer notice the smell; it recedes into the background, present but not present, like the sound of traffic for most New Yorkers. Others can't stop thinking about the smell, even after years; it permeates everything, sickens them, (and) interferes with their sleep. Greeley is a factory town, one where cattle are the units of production." Source: Rolling Stone Magazine, "Fast Food Nation: Meat and Potatoes, 1998."

Basically, when you raise cattle or any ruminant in a confined area with grain as its basic food source, you will have problems. I can tell you from my own experience, the cattle we feed grain to smell different. They have a sour smell. Those on grass, hay and alfalfa are more pleasant to be around. So what is the specific problem with grain fed animals and grain fed cattle in particular? "Ruminant" animals are “cud-chewing” species, such as cows, goats, sheep, and bison. Their specialized digestive system has evolved to digest the biodiversity of grasses found on pastureland. When ruminant animals (such as cattle) are fed a grain-based diet, it can cause them a range of health problems, including:

ACIDOSIS: Most feedlot ruminants suffer from a persistent form of acid indigestion.
RUMENITIS: Acidosis can lead to an inflammation of the wall of the rumen. This can eventually become ulcerated.
LIVER ABSCESSES: As the rumen wall becomes ulcerated, bacteria pass through the walls, enter the bloodstream, and make their way to the liver where they cause abscesses.
BLOAT: All ruminants produce gas as a by-product of digestion. When they are on pasture, they belch up the gas without any difficulty. When they are switched to a diet of grain, gas becomes trapped by a dense mat of foam.
ASPHYXIATION: In serious cases of bloat, the rumen becomes so distended with gas that the animal is unable to breathe and dies from asphyxiation.
FEED LOT POLIO: When the rumen becomes too acidic, an enzyme is produced which destroys thiamin or vitamin B-1. Lack of vitamin B-1 starves the brain of energy, creating paralysis. Cattle with feedlot polio are referred to as "brainers."
From the Center for Urban Education about Sustainable Agriculture ©2009 CUESA. All rights reserved

There is a lot of additional information at Eatwild.com or your can Google the "benefits of grass-fed beef. Michael Pollan's book, The Omnivore's Dilemma is also an excellent source of information. Grass-finished beef is high in omega-3 fatty acids, vitamins A and E, beta-carotene, CLA (conjugated linoleic acid), and more. There is little to no risk of mad cow disease from grass-finished animals.

Not wanting to toss out the baby with the bath water, I do not want to condemn the entire beef feed lot industry. There are those who do a better job than others. Some feed lots have more room for the cattle to be confined in and clean their waste more often, but the basic problem is they all feed a diet of grain filled with medications and antacids to cattle that have received artificial growth and other stimulant treatments.