There have been many critics and misconceptions over the years talking about the use of hormones and antibiotics in cattle.

Adrienne Ivey and her husband have Evergreen Cattle Company at Ituna where they use hormones and antibiotics and adds that as a mother she’s comfortable with the homegrown beef she puts on the dinner plate and that she is proud of their use of antibiotics on the ranch.

She feels the hormones make their operation as sustainable as possible, especially when running grasser yearling cattle out on pasture.

"We could absolutely choose not to use them," she said. "But then the cattle would need to be on feed for longer; we would need to use more land to grow more feed use more water and of course produce more greenhouse gases as we are doing so, just to produce the same amount of beef. For us at our ranch, it's just a really great tool for us, and one that as a mother that I'm really comfortable with."

Ivey adds that using antibiotics if an animal gets sick is like giving antibiotics to your child when they are sick.

She says, in the end, it’s important to remember that all meat is inspected.

"There are rules and guidelines around medication use," she said. "Ranchers take withdraw times extremely seriously and were very lucky that we can say in Canada. All beef is anti-biotic free for that very reason. Everything is tested for antibiotic residue and on the very rare occurrence, that something might come up with some residue, then that is not allowed to enter the food chain."

Ivey says science has proven that hormones are safe and sustainable and is a strong advocate and promoter of the beef sector on her Facebook blog View from the Ranch Porch.