Welcome to OptimOZ! The Biohacker Store. Free Delivery over $99 in Australia.

0

Your Cart is Empty

So, just to prove that I read the comments (hi April!) I'm going to share some tips on grass fed butter in Australia.

To buy grass fed butter in an affordable way (without spending $7-8 per block on something that says "grass fed" on the label) is an exercise in risk management. The risks are that the cows could get fed grain:

  • As their primary food source
  • As a backup food source (in winter or drought when there's no grass)
  • As a treat to produce their milk 

So the trick is to find products that tick (or don't tick) the above boxes. In order of priority here are the products that I use regularly:

  • Westgold butter (available at most woolies) - NZ dairy farmed butter. NZ is a wet country with lots of grass, its fundamentally uneconomical to farm dairy as a grain fed operation. Furthermore, being a wet country the drought risk is low (they don't have to substitute grain to keep the farm going).
  • Pepe Saya (available at farmers markets and online) - Aus dairy farmed. This is a real artisan style butter, in a word, it's amazing. We work with Pepe Saya to produce a Grass Fed Ghee which a really good alternative for anyone who can't handle dairy or if grass fed butter is too hard to find.
  • Ashgrove butter (order from their webstore) - tassie farmed butter. This butter is sold as grass fed but they do feed the cows some grain when they're being milked. The amount of grain feed is minimal but still existent.
  • Myrtleford Cultured Butter - Butter made from pasture fed cows and cultured with lactic bacteria for over 18 hours. made from 100% grass fed cows cream. 82%+ butterfat butter.
  • Woolworths HomeBrand - NZ dairy farmed butter (we suspect it comes from the same manufacturer as Westgold.) Woolworths have in fact confirmed in writing that this butter is from grass-fed cows.)
  • Organic Times - Aus dairy farmed butter. This is the only butter brand that actually says 'from grass-fed cows' on the packaging.
  • Paris Creek - Aus butter from Fleurieu Peninsula near Adelaide. It has a rich yellow colour which is indicative of high levels of beta-carotene. It is available at health and gourmet food stores and has also been spotted at some Coles.
  • Allowrie butter - Aus dairy farmed butter. This is my backup when the woolies is out of butter. We've spoken to the manufacturer, and the cows have grass as their primary food source but there is risk that the diet is supplemented with grain or hay silage when the availability of grass is poor.
  • True Organic Australian Salted Butter available from Born Organic who are based in Western Australia
  • Australian Organic butter is available at Eden Farm Produce in Numurkah, VIC and other artisanal stores like Oasis Food Paradise.
  • Absolute Organic is a Belgian butter available at Harris Farm Markets. But no specific grass-fed claims are made.

Note: For anyone looking for KerryGold Butter in Australia, it is not available. As listed above, we have plenty of local options available. 

Cheers

Related link: Grass Fed Meat in Australia

Brenton Levi
Brenton Levi


21 Responses

steve
steve

February 10, 2014

hey guys,, after heaps of research looking around and calling farms iv found some AWSOME stuff! 180 acres butter is by far the yellowest butter around! its an organic farm in NZ. the butter has one ingredient, organic cream. free range grass fed cows no antibiotics or hormones and I think its better than peppe saya! just saying… found it at 7 star groceries

as for meat you cant beat Glenmores meats in glebe. the freshest meat around, its tender (indicator of a well treated animal) the fat is clearly yellow when compared with the grain fed. they even cut it up for you on the spot!

Leanne
Leanne

December 12, 2013

Does anyone know if Lurpak Danish butter is grass fed? I looked on their website but there was no mention of it. I bought the unsalted variety but as yet have not tried it in the BP coffee. I like the NZ Westgold butter, but it would be great to try the Irish butter, if only we could get it here in Oz.

Martin
Martin

May 16, 2013

Asprey says cultured butter (i.e. goes to ballet, opera, etc.) has more butyric acid, the main anti-inflammatory agent. If you dig into this site: http://wholefoodcatalog.info/nutrient/butyric_acid/fats_and_oils/ it says that ‘fermented butter’, which I assume is synonymous with cultured, has 2900mg p/100g compared to unsalted un-fermented butter with 2700mg p/100g. So the increase in butyrate is only minor for a four fold increase in cost for any of the premium cultured butter brands.

Girgar is Danish Style, which is another word for cultured from what I can research and get off the label. It has cultures in it, but I’m happy for someone to call BS on that. It costs $1.60 more than Westgold and is sold at Woolworths (Melbourne). Alas, it is AU made from Fonterra, meaning that it’s just cultured unsalted Western Star butter. Given the only minor improvement in butyrate from culturing, it’s probably a better idea to stick to Westgold and hope they mainstream a cheap cultured variant soon.

One would hope that the $8 premium cultured butters (e.g. Ashgrove, Saint Omer, Paris Creek, Myrtleford) are just loaded with Butyric Acid. Not sure how to check, but I can say they are all more yellow than Girgar, and Westgold is more yellow than everything except Paris Creek.

Regards,
Martin.

Aaron Lorch
Aaron Lorch

April 08, 2013

I call bullshit on butter producers saying “we feed them grain to get them into the milking station.” I had a good chat with someone that used to own a dairy cow (my mother! ha!). As it turns out, if cattle don’t get milked, they experience pain. They will be ready and waiting for you to milk them, and if you’re not there on time, they let you know about it.

I’m wondering if this is a corporate line to cover something up? I work for an oil company, so yes, I’ll admit to using those lines myself ;)

Eunice
Eunice

April 05, 2013

Leon – thanks for the tip re Woolies homebrand butter from NZ. It is AMAZING.
And I compared the color to the woollies “select” butter from Tasmania. The NZ butter has a better color which according to Mark’s daily apple is an indication that it is more (?) grassfed. Not bad for $1.5 for 250g.

Kunal
Kunal

March 25, 2013

Pepe Saya is delivering Australia-wide!
http://butterandco.tumblr.com/post/46207848644/pepe-saya

lois
lois

March 23, 2013

Hi Leon

I have just returned from 2 weeks in New Zealand.

While I was there the North Island was officially declared to be in drought. Pretty dry in the South too where I was.

Pictures on the tele of cows and sheep grazing on the dry barren land, and farmers having a tough time of it, reminded me of Australia a few years ago.

Just wondering if the lovely kiwi butter will still be as good??

Kunal
Kunal

March 12, 2013

Got some unsalted HomeBrand butter from Woolies today. It’s from New Zealand, ie. safe to assume it is grass-fed.

beefwalker
beefwalker

March 12, 2013

@Nathan, Westgold do a GREAT unsalted butter for your Bullet-Proof Coffee!
I find it at Woolies – and sometimes at Coles. Don’t shop at IGA, they’re farrrrking expensive!

Nathan
Nathan

February 15, 2013

Got Westgold here at IGA but its salted so not much good from my BPC but still good & cheap for cooking…

Kunal
Kunal

January 14, 2013

Just tried som Cultured Pepe Saya this morning to cook up some scrambled eggs. Delectable! If you can’t find this butter in a store nearby, the factory store is in Tempe and open Mon-Fri. Make sure to call ahead to make sure they are open.

Kunal
Kunal

January 12, 2013

I was out in Newtown today and managed to find some grass fed butter:

Picked up some Pepe Saya from The 7 Star Supermarket in Newtown. They also have branches in Darlinghurst and Camperdown. As far as I can tell from my research, Pepe Saya butter is derived from Grass Fed cows.

Dr Earth on King street sell OrganicTimes Butter which specifically says on the label that is from grass fed cows

The King Street Grocer sells Pepe Saya and also New Zealand Westgold.

Jay Killeen
Jay Killeen

January 10, 2013

I have opted for the Westgold Butter here in Brisbane. Can easily get it from the local woolies. Would love to find some cultured unpasturised varieties but unlikely.

Jen
Jen

November 29, 2012

Hi Leon, where abouts are you? You can get it on line but its double the Price, where I am it is just over $3 for 200gms . Seriously must get BP coffee sometime soon, are you going to get the MTC oil.

:)

Leon
Leon

November 26, 2012

Hey Jen,
Thats an awesome tip – thanks!

I’m going to be in Adelaide on Wednesday so I’ll have to see if i can bring a few blocks home!! :)

Jen
Jen

November 25, 2012

Hiya, if anyone is in south Australia, Paris Creek have and organic biodynamic grass fed butter unsalted. I get mine from Coles. Woollies did carry it but I have not been able to get it here in our country store.

Jen :)

Leon
Leon

November 12, 2012

@April – I have seen the butter factory website and I’m dying to try it :) looks amazing!! There are also a few underground sources of unpasteurised butter/dairy out there that i may or may not know about ;)

@Andres – i’m pretty familiar with source of grass fed meat in the Sydney area but not so much in other places. It’ll definitely be the topic of another blog post!!

Leon
Leon

November 12, 2012

Hi guys,
Couple of responses for you (sorry for the delay :S )

@Irene, I have seen Organic Times around, but its salted and like you said a bit more expensive. I’m also a bit concerned that the organic label might be being used when the cows are being fed organic grain, although i haven’t talked to the manufacturer. If you compare the trans fat content then it can be an indicator of how grass fed the cows are, the trans fat in the milk is produced by bacteria in the gut of the cow that only eats grass. Funnily enough the highest trans fat butter i’ve seen is the Woolworths generic brand! Not sure what the testing protocol is for labeling purposes but as a general indicator i’m sure its fine.

Also – thanks for the tip on J&L meats!

Irene
Irene

October 28, 2012

Leon, have you tried Organic Times butter? A little pricier than Westgold but it has a lovely taste. I also go to J&L Meats in Prahran Market for grass fed meat. The service is exceptional and all of their meat is free range.

April
April

October 23, 2012

Thanks for the post! I will also add that in my quest I have discovered a butter manufacturer in Myrtleford. This guys ship around Australia and there are a couple of places in different states that sell their butter (it’s listed on their site).

http://www.thebutterfactory.com.au/

I can attest to that if you put this in your coffee the creaminess is awesome. Also their salted butter is absolutely fantastic.

Andres
Andres

October 22, 2012

Thanks for the tips Leon,

Any tips on grass fed meat? Is there a website that you recommend or any particular brand? or what to look for on the labels, etc?

Thanks in advance

Leave a comment

Comments will be approved before showing up.


Also in Biohacking Blog

Biohacking Weekly: Muscle Health, Low-Carb Diet and Ketones
Biohacking Weekly: Muscle Health, Low-Carb Diet and Ketones

by Guest Author May 10, 2023 3 min read

In this edition of Biohacking Weekly:

1. Muscle is the longevity organ.
2. Book recommendation: "Built to Move" by Kelly and Juliet Starrett.
3. The best foods to fill common micronutrient gaps.
4. Low-carb diet can help reverse type 2 diabetes.
5. Ketones may be a promising treatment for neurodegenerative diseases.

Read More
biohacking weekly 22
Biohacking Weekly: Stress Relief Box Breathing, Peter Attia, Glutathione and Ben Bikman

by Guest Author May 02, 2023 3 min read

In this edition of Biohacking Weekly:

1. How does a navy seal manage stress?
2. The five "tactical domains" of longevity.
3. Low-carb diet could help cure obesity and type 2 diabetes.
4. Liposomal glutathione: a powerful "master antioxidant".
5. Book review: Why We Get Sick by Dr. Ben Bikman

Read More
Why We Get Sick by Dr Ben Bikman
Book Review: Why We Get Sick by Dr Ben Bikman

by Guest Author April 22, 2023 4 min read

Dr. Ben Bikman, a biomedical scientist and pathophysiology professor, in his book "Why We Get Sick" explores why insulin resistance has become such a significant problem for human health.

Insulin is an essential hormone that regulates energy storage and usage in the body and insulin resistance is a common health disorder, affecting a large portion of the global population. Adopting a low-carbohydrate, high-fat, and high-protein diet can help reverse insulin resistance which will lead to significant improvements in health within a short time frame.

Learn more about the effective treatment of insulin resistance in this book review.

Read More