If, like many people, you normally just pick your meat out of a supermarket chiller cabinet in a post-work daze, the question of whether grass-fed or grain-fed beef tastes better may seem pretty arcane.
There are many die-hard beef lovers, however, for whom the question is one of major importance, with each type of meat having gathered its own committed fan club. While some swear by the lower fat content and firmer texture of grass-fed meat, others insist these qualities are nothing compared with the succulent, fat marbling of grain-fed steaks.
Abu Dhabi's beef lovers are as divided on the subject as anyone else - it's rare that you find a serious steak-house in the city that doesn't make sure it offers something to both camps. As Jason Oakley, the chef de cuisine at the St Regis Saadiyat Island Resort's Grill, 55th and 5th, says: "Asking chefs whether grass-fed or grain-fed beef is better is like asking how to make a curry in India - you're going to get 500 different answers."
The difference between the two types of meat, however, isn't as clear-cut as you might think. Darren Andow, the executive chef in charge of the restaurants at Yas Island Rotana and Centro Yas Island, including the Blue Grill steakhouse, says: "All the grain-fed beef we serve is actually grass-fed, too, for the first part of its existence - the cattle are only put on a grain diet for the last 100 to 120 days of their lives."
Those final days still make a major difference, nonetheless. While the fat from grass-fed cattle tends to surround the muscle, the flesh of grain-fed cattle has more fat marbled through it, creating a natural baste for the meat as it melts during cooking. This can also boost the meat's flavour intensity, though the naturally herby flavour created by a pure grass diet also has its fans.
Concern for the environment is often behind many people's preference for grass-fed meat. Beef fattened up on barley, wheat or maize requires more energy and resources from farmers than any other type of husbandry, while the cattle's final fattening often (but not always) takes place in confined conditions.
Exclusively pasture-fed cattle, by contrast, have a lighter carbon footprint, while bringing them to slaughter requires less penning of the animals and produces meat with a marginally higher level of essential fatty acids. While grass feeding is the norm in some countries such as Argentina, in the US - where it is less common - it generally costs a bit more per pound. But does the extra cash pay off when it comes to taste?
Pushed to choose his favourite, Andow comes out on the side of grain: "We do serve grass-fed beef from Argentina at Blue Grill, which has a slightly more gamey flavour but, personally, I still feel the grain-fed [beef] has a slightly better taste - its marbling makes the meat more fatty but also more juicy."
While Oakley also serves grass-fed beef, he broadly feels the same way: "In blind tasting, there are always people who will go with the softer, more mellow taste of grass-fed meat, but if I had to choose one meat it would be [grain-fed] Blackmore Farm wagyu from Australia," he says. "It has no steroids or what have you in it and blends old and new farming methods brilliantly. The fat starts to melt at around 7 degrees in your hand and the end texture is a little like firm butter, with a slightly nutty taste and a wonderful, almost floral perfume."
With both these experts in the field erring on the side of grain, you might think the issue was sewn up - except that the writer of this piece personally prefers grass-fed meat.
Sure, the lesser fat marbling means it needs to be cooked carefully and I personally find it difficult to make a well-done grass-fed steak taste great. But while it doesn't have that marbled succulence, I still feel it has a meatier, firmer and - perversely - grainier texture that makes it more interesting. That choice might raise the hackles of lovers of unctuous, buttery grain-fed meat but, thankfully, Abu Dhabi provides ample choice for both of us.
Other ways to buy used products in the UAE
UAE insurance firm Al Wathba National Insurance Company (AWNIC) last year launched an e-commerce website with a facility enabling users to buy car wrecks.
Bidders and potential buyers register on the online salvage car auction portal to view vehicles, review condition reports, or arrange physical surveys, and then start bidding for motors they plan to restore or harvest for parts.
Physical salvage car auctions are a common method for insurers around the world to move on heavily damaged vehicles, but AWNIC is one of the few UAE insurers to offer such services online.
For cars and less sizeable items such as bicycles and furniture, Dubizzle is arguably the best-known marketplace for pre-loved.
Founded in 2005, in recent years it has been joined by a plethora of Facebook community pages for shifting used goods, including Abu Dhabi Marketplace, Flea Market UAE and Arabian Ranches Souq Market while sites such as The Luxury Closet and Riot deal largely in second-hand fashion.
At the high-end of the pre-used spectrum, resellers such as Timepiece360.ae, WatchBox Middle East and Watches Market Dubai deal in authenticated second-hand luxury timepieces from brands such as Rolex, Hublot and Tag Heuer, with a warranty.
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
THE BIO: Mohammed Ashiq Ali
Proudest achievement: “I came to a new country and started this shop”
Favourite TV programme: the news
Favourite place in Dubai: Al Fahidi. “They started the metro in 2009 and I didn’t take it yet.”
Family: six sons in Dubai and a daughter in Faisalabad
