Chapter 1: Primordial Pastures
Beef Academy: History of Beef (Early Origins)
Approximately 2 million years ago, during the early Pleistocene epoch, an important shift occurred in human evolution with the emergence of Homo erectus. This species is often associated with advances in tool use, survival strategies, and an increased reliance on animal foods in certain environments.
One of the most transformative developments linked to early humans was the control and use of fire. Archaeological evidence for controlled fire use remains debated and limited before about 1 million years ago, with some suggestive traces possibly as early as 1.5 million years ago. More reliable signs of habitual fire control appear closer to 800,000 years ago.
Some of the earliest widely cited evidence for cooking food with fire comes from sites such as Gesher Benot Ya’aqov in Israel, dating to approximately 780,000 years ago.
Once early humans achieved regular control of fire, it became an invaluable tool for warmth, protection, and food preparation. Cooking meat and other foods softened tough fibers, reduced pathogens, improved digestibility, and allowed humans to extract more calories and nutrients.
According to an influential hypothesis proposed by anthropologist Richard Wrangham, the advantages of cooked food may have supported increased energy demands, potentially contributing to biological changes such as larger brain sizes in later hominins.
The savanna and woodland environments inhabited by Homo erectus included large prehistoric herbivores, including various bovid species (early relatives within the cattle family) along with other megafauna. Hunting and scavenging these animals provided essential sources of protein and fat, particularly valuable in changing climates.
Fire may also have influenced social behavior. Gathering around hearths could have encouraged cooperation, food sharing, and communication, fostering stronger social bonds—though clearer archaeological evidence for structured hearths appears later in the record.
In this foundational period of human history, the intensifying relationship with large grazing animals and the eventual adoption of fire helped lay the groundwork for later developments. While modern beef from domesticated cattle would not appear until around 10,000 years ago, human reliance on meat from wild bovids and the benefits of processing food (including cooking) began much earlier.
These early adaptations enhanced nutrition from animal foods, tool use for hunting and butchering, and the growing mastery of fire helped shape the cultural and culinary traditions involving high-quality meat that evolved over millennia.
Sources & Further Reading
The Beef Academy content is informed by peer-reviewed archaeological and anthropological research. Key references include:
- Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History – Human Origins Program (Homo erectus)
- Berna et al. (2012), Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences – Early fire use at Wonderwerk Cave
- Roebroeks & Villa (2011), PNAS – Review of early habitual fire use
- National Institutes of Health (PubMed) – Evidence related to early fire control
- Harvard University – Richard Wrangham and the cooking hypothesis