Earth Fed Muscle is a Berks County-based and family-owned supplement brand that stands out for its commitment to clean, whole-food ingredients and a minimalist approach to formulation. Founded by lifelong athletes looking for a cleaner alternative to the industry standard, the brand was born out of a desire to create tasty, trustworthy, high-performing sports supplements. The mission is simple: use real, whole-food ingredients, keep things simple, and support sustainable farming practices along the way. You’ll never find artificial flavors, sweeteners, or unnecessary fillers in their products.
Earth Fed Muscle supplements are manufactured and shipped from Reading, and the team remains involved in the local fitness and wellness communities. While Earth Fed Muscle worksย with professional athletes across the country, its operations and outreach remain centered in Pennsylvania.
Grass-Fed Whey: Understanding the Source
Earth Fed Muscle partners with Truly Grass Fedโข in Ireland to source its whey protein. On these farms, cows spend over 250 days each year on pasture and are primarily grass-fed. This approach avoids the use of synthetic hormones and includes no soy-based feed.
The way dairy cows are raised varies. Some farms feed cows primarily grain, often in more confined settings designed to manage land use and increase production. These systems are more intensive and can involve increased use of antibiotics due to higher risk of illness in densely housed animals. Grass-fed systems, by contrast, generally allow cows more time on pasture and a diet that is mostly forage-based. According to a 2019 study, increased pasture time has been associated with behavioral signs of reduced stress in dairy cows, such as more time spent lying down.
Truly Grass Fed partners with over 3,000 farms in Ireland, where cows graze on open land and eat a diet that is at least 95% grass. These farms provide an average of two acres of pasture per cow, aiming to minimize the need for confinement, antibiotics, or synthetic growth hormones.
Nutritional Differences in Grass-Fed Whey
The diet of dairy cows can influence the nutritional profile of the milk and, by extension, the whey protein produced from it. Studies have identified notable differences between milk from grain-fed and grass-fed cows. While grain-fed cows often produce milk with higher overall fat content, including monounsaturated fats, grass-fed milk tends to contain more beneficial fatty acids such as Omega-3s and Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA).
Omega-3 fatty acids have been widely studied for their role in cardiovascular health. Some research suggests they may support heart function by improving blood vessel integrity and helping to regulate inflammation in the body. CLA, another fatty acid found in higher concentrations in grass-fed dairy, has been linked to improved metabolic efficiency and may assist the body in utilizing stored energy more effectively.
The type of feed given to cows directly affects the composition of these fats in the milk. Grass-based diets tend to be richer in the precursors needed to produce Omega-3s and CLA, which can result in a whey protein product with a slightly different nutritional profile compared to that from grain-fed sources.
Earth Fed Muscle supplements are manufactured and shipped from Reading, and the team remains involved in the local fitness and wellness communities. While Earth Fed Muscle does work with professional athletes across the country, its operations and outreach remain centered in Pennsylvania.
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