The Truth About Belcampo, Berkey, and Kerrygold

Original Publish Date: 11/12/22

 

This week, one of my clients shared where she sources her water. She mentioned Berkeys and how she knew I was a fan. I was a fan of Berkey but always recommended a cheaper option. You can find Alexapure for half the price. 

 

I shared a Berkey update with my client, so I thought I’d share a learned lesson.

 

Belcampo Meats

Several online influencers touted Belcampo for its organic, sustainably-raised, regeneratively-raised, grass-fed, and grass-finished meats. People paid over $60 a pound for a ribeye. Maybe more as I never bought or supported the company.

 

The Belcampo Scandal

A disgruntled Belcampo employee shared how they vacuum-sealed USDA choice beef filets (which are corn-fed, bought for $10 a pound, then sold for $47.99), whole national beef rib racks (also corn-fed and allegedly produced at factory farms), boxes of Pasturebird chickens (which are not organic), and other non-Belcampo products.

 

While it seemed like an isolated event, the news eventually caused all Belcampo stores to close. (Source, Source)

 

Kerrygold Butter

Kerrygold butter is known for its golden grass-fed full-fat butter.

The Kerrygold Butter Scandal

A class action lawsuit was filed against Kerrygold for false, misleading, and deceptive marketing. At times of the year, Kerrygold cows are fed genetically modified grains (including corn and soy) instead of grass. Some of the lawsuits were dismissed because the plaintiff couldn’t prove receipts of the amount purchased and the subsequent damage.

 

Still, it doesn’t take away from the fact that Kerrygold is not from 100% grass-fed cow’s dairy. (Source, Source)

 

Kerrygold has also changed its butter formula and some of the butter is now lower-fat butter. (Source)

 

Berkey Water Filter

Berkey is known in the wellness space to be one of the best water filtration systems that help remove all contaminants, including a separate filter for fluoride. It comes with a pretty penny ($500). 

 

The Berkey Water Filter Scandal

There is a class action lawsuit against Berkey for not filtrating as well as it claims. A third-party test on the Berkey filter (the activated carbon block) showed dismal results. (Source, Source)

 

Additionally, you cannot buy Berkeys in California as California requires a lead certification. “For a company to be able to sell its products in California, a manufacturer had to pay an independent third-party tester to certify that none of their product’s components contained more than 0.25% of lead.”

 

Berkey chose not to third-party test. (Source, Source)

 

The Berkey court case is still happening, and no verdict has been made. 

 

So What?

All companies will have their grey areas. Most companies will try to do their best until money and resources become an issue. When companies have to make hard decisions, they sometimes look the other way…

 

How many of us have bought a specific product because we swear we feel better?

 

Or that we feel obligated to buy the highest quality meats and the grassiest yellow dairy to ensure healing?

 

How many of us suffering from food sensitivities or autoimmune illnesses were able to tolerate Belcampo meats? 

 

Sometimes we can chase the highest quality products that everyone touts to be the best, but we never know if it really is the best. If you ate Kerrygold, drank Berkey water, or bought Belcampo and noticed a beneficial difference, maybe the difference was brought upon by the Expectation Effect. 

 

Essentially whatever we think will be the outcome, good or bad, we manifest it to be true. I talk a lot more in detail about this topic in this week’s Cutting Against the Grain podcast. 

 

Don’t chase perfection. (That itself is a stressor). Find consistency instead. 

 

Give yourself grace and know that what you believe may be more important than the actual sourcing. 

 

In health,

Judy