{"id":13727,"date":"2026-08-30T15:42:39","date_gmt":"2026-08-30T13:42:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.elmercadodeorigen.com\/cuanto-hierro-tiene-carne-ternera\/"},"modified":"2026-09-02T10:34:06","modified_gmt":"2026-09-02T08:34:06","slug":"cuanto-hierro-tiene-carne-ternera","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.elmercadodeorigen.com\/en\/how-much-iron-in-beef\/","title":{"rendered":"How much iron is in beef? Per 100 g and per serving"},"content":{"rendered":"

Beef<\/strong> is a familiar source of dietary iron. The exact figure varies with the cut, fat content, animal and whether the meat is raw or cooked, but a useful reference for raw lean beef is about 2.1 mg of iron per 100 g<\/strong>. A 150 g serving provides roughly 3.2 mg<\/strong>, using data published by the Spanish Nutrition Foundation (FEN).<\/p>\n

The number on a food-composition table is only part of the story.<\/strong> Meat supplies heme iron as well as non-heme iron. Heme iron is generally more bioavailable than the non-heme iron that predominates in legumes and vegetables, so a simple comparison of milligrams per 100 g can be misleading.<\/p>\n

How much iron is in 100 grams of beef?<\/h2>\n

FEN lists 2.1 mg of iron per 100 g<\/strong> for lean veal\/beef and around 3.2 mg for a 150 g serving. These are average reference values rather than a guarantee for every steak. Different cuts and products have slightly different compositions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Beef type<\/th>\nApprox. iron per 100 g<\/th>\nComment<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Lean beef\/veal<\/td>\n2.1 mg<\/td>\nFEN reference for raw lean meat<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Medium-fat beef<\/td>\n1.9 mg<\/td>\nAverage food-composition value<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Beef chop<\/td>\n1.6 mg<\/td>\nVaries with cut and fat proportion<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

The differences between cuts are modest compared with the bigger nutritional picture. Choosing a cut solely because it has a few tenths of a milligram more iron is rarely useful. Protein, fat, portion size, cooking method and the rest of the diet matter too.<\/p>\n

What type of iron does beef provide?<\/h2>\n

Food contains heme<\/strong> and non-heme<\/strong> iron. Heme iron comes from compounds such as haemoglobin and myoglobin and is found in meat, poultry and seafood. Non-heme iron occurs in both animal and plant foods but is the main form in legumes, grains, nuts and vegetables.<\/p>\n

Heme iron is usually absorbed more efficiently and is less affected by other meal components. Non-heme iron is more sensitive to the surrounding diet: vitamin C can improve its absorption, while phytates and some polyphenols can reduce it. That is why 7 mg of iron in a dry legume is not automatically equivalent to more absorbed iron than 2 mg from meat<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Does a serving of beef provide a lot of iron?<\/h2>\n

A 150 g serving of lean beef provides around 3.2 mg of iron<\/strong> based on the FEN reference table. That is nutritionally meaningful, although beef is not the most iron-dense food available. Offal, some shellfish, certain cured meats and dry legumes may show higher analytical values.<\/p>\n

It helps to separate two questions: which food contains the most iron?<\/em> and which food supplies iron that is more readily absorbed?<\/em> They are related but not identical. Our comparison of iron-rich foods<\/a> looks at both.<\/p>\n

Does cooking change the iron content?<\/h2>\n

Iron is a mineral, so normal cooking does not destroy it in the same way that heat can degrade some vitamins. However, the number expressed per 100 g may rise after cooking because meat loses water. A cooked steak weighs less, so nutrients become more concentrated per unit of weight.<\/p>\n

Some minerals can also move into cooking juices, especially in wet cooking methods. For fair comparisons, use data for foods in the same state: raw with raw or cooked with cooked.<\/p>\n

Why there is no single iron figure for all beef<\/h2>\n

Food-composition tables use reference foods. A lean fillet, a fattier cut and minced beef do not have identical composition. Trimming, water content and cooking method also matter. It is therefore more accurate to use a reasonable range and the product\u2019s own nutrition information when available than to treat one number as universal.<\/p>\n

How to calculate iron in a serving<\/h2>\n

If a source gives iron per 100 grams, a serving can be calculated proportionally. The important detail is to use weight in the same state as the reference table. A raw-food figure should not be applied directly to the final cooked weight after substantial water loss without accounting for that change.<\/p>\n

Which guide to use for comparisons<\/h2>\n

This page answers how much iron beef provides. To compare meat and legumes by iron type and availability, use the meat-versus-legume iron guide<\/a>. For a broader view that also includes vegetables, see our comparison of iron-rich foods<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Beef-specific questions<\/h2>\n

Do all cuts contain exactly the same iron?<\/h3>\n

No. The differences do not make every cut a completely different food, but they help explain why two reliable tables can show somewhat different values.<\/p>\n

Does cooking remove iron?<\/h3>\n

Iron is a mineral and is not destroyed at normal cooking temperatures. What often changes is food weight through water loss, which can make the value per 100 grams appear more concentrated.<\/p>\n

Sources<\/h2>\n