Biltong While Pregnant: What to Ask Your Doctor

We cannot tell you whether biltong is right for you during pregnancy, and no snack maker can. That is a question for your doctor or midwife, and this page gives you the exact questions to bring. Grub makes certified Glatt Kosher biltong, air-dried in small batches in Florida, so we can tell you plainly what it is and how it is made. What your pregnancy allows is for your doctor to decide.

Why we are not giving you a yes or a no

You will find a lot of confident answers online. Some say yes, some say no, and most are written by people who do not know your health, your history or your doctor's advice. We are a food maker, not a medical office. A guess from us could be wrong for you, and the stakes are too high for a guess.

So this guide does something different. It explains what biltong is, so you can describe it accurately. It lists what is on our label. And it gives you a set of questions that make a short appointment useful. If your doctor says to skip it, skip it. If your doctor says it is fine for you, you will have the facts to follow their advice.

What biltong is, in plain terms

Describing the food correctly is half the conversation. Here are the facts you can pass on.

• It is beef. Whole-muscle, sliced, from grass-fed cattle in our case.
• It is cured and air-dried. It is not cooked the way jerky is. Our article on whether biltong is cooked explains what air-dried means.
• It is ready to eat. There is nothing to prepare and it needs no refrigeration.
• It contains salt, vinegar and spices. The exact list depends on the flavor.

Say it in those words. "Cured, air-dried beef, not cooked, eaten as it comes." A doctor can work with that.

What is on our label

These are the ingredients, straight from the bags. Read your own bag too, as it is the final word.

• Original: grass-fed kosher beef, coriander, black pepper, salt, garlic, vinegar.
• Peri Peri: grass-fed kosher beef, coriander, red pepper, black pepper, salt, garlic, vinegar, brown sugar.
• Loaded Garlic: grass-fed kosher beef, coriander, garlic, roasted garlic, salt, tomato powder, vinegar.

Our Sliced Biltong comes in all three. Peri Peri has real heat, so say so if you are describing that flavor. Meat Candy, our beef jerky, is a separate product: cooked and glazed, with its own label. If you want to ask about it too, bring that label.

We give no nutrition numbers in this article. If your doctor wants them, read the panel on the bag.

Questions to bring to your doctor or midwife

Print this list or save it on your phone. These are open questions, not claims. Your doctor decides what applies to you.

1. "Is cured, air-dried, ready-to-eat meat something you would advise for me, or would you rather I avoid it?"
2. "Does it matter that this product is air-dried rather than cooked?"
3. "Is there any ingredient on this label, such as the salt, the spices, the garlic or the vinegar, that you would flag for me?"
4. "Do you have guidance on how much salt I should aim for, and does this fit?"
5. "Would you want a product like this to be heated first, or eaten as it is?"
6. "If I do eat it, is there anything I should watch for afterward, and who should I call?"
7. "Does the answer change with my trimester, my other conditions or my medications?"

Take the actual label with you, or a photo of it. A specific bag is easier to answer about than a general category.

Things to ask us

You can also ask us anything about how our product is made, and we will answer plainly. Good questions for a maker are:

• What is the full ingredient list for the exact flavor I have?
• How is it made and dried?
• Is there anything on the label that I should show my doctor?

We can give you facts about our product. We will not tell you it is safe or unsafe for a pregnancy, because that is not our call.

How to get a useful answer in a short appointment

Appointments are brief. A vague question gets a vague answer, and a specific one gets a specific one. A few habits help.

• Lead with the product, not the category. "Cured, air-dried beef, sold sealed, ready to eat" is clearer than "dried meat."
• Bring the actual bag or a photo of the label. The ingredient list is the most concrete thing you can hand over.
• Ask for the reason as well as the answer. If your doctor says no, ask whether that applies to all cured meats or only some. If it is yes, ask whether there is anything you should do differently, such as how much or how often. You will get your own numbers from them, not from us.
• Write the answer down. Put it in your phone, next to the question. Pregnancy comes with a lot of advice, and it is easy to lose one sentence.
• Ask who to call. If something feels wrong after you eat anything, you want to know in advance whom to ring.

If you see a midwife, a doctor and a specialist, you may hear slightly different things. That is normal. Ask which one to follow for this question.

Why the internet cannot settle this

Search for this topic and you will see two kinds of answer. One group says cured meat is fine. Another says to avoid it entirely. Both can sound sure of themselves. Neither knows you.

Guidance can differ between doctors and between countries, and it can change over time. A forum post from a friend of a friend is not a reason to eat something, or to skip it. What helps is a short, direct answer from the person who knows your history. That is why we put the questions in this article and left out a verdict.

The same goes for us. We have a reason to want you to buy biltong. That is exactly why you should not take our word on a medical point. Ask someone with nothing to sell.

Buying and handling, if your doctor says yes

If your doctor clears it for you, a few plain habits apply to any packaged food. They are not medical advice. They are what we would do with a bag in our own kitchen.

• Check that the bag is sealed and undamaged when it arrives. If a delivery is damaged, contact us.
• Bring the package inside promptly and store it as the bag says.
• Read the label for the flavor you bought. Flavors differ.
• If a bag looks, smells or feels wrong to you, do not eat it. Our guide on how to tell if biltong has gone bad lists what to look for.

None of this replaces what your doctor tells you. If their advice differs from anything here, follow theirs.

If you keep kosher

Pregnancy does not change what a kosher household needs from a label. A certification and a certificate you can read are still the standard. Grub biltong is certified Glatt Kosher; the details are on our kosher biltong page. For any question about what your own practice allows during pregnancy, ask your rabbi, and ask your doctor about the medical side. They are two separate questions.

If your doctor says to skip it

Then skip it, and keep the bags for later. Biltong is shelf-stable, so a sealed bag will wait. Our guide on storing biltong covers how to keep an opened bag, though if you are unsure about anything, ask your doctor.

There are other kosher snacks you can ask about too. Your doctor may have views on those as well, and our list of kosher snacks with real protein is a place to start the conversation.

If you are reading this for someone else, a partner or a friend who is expecting, the same rule holds. Do not decide for them, and do not send a bag as a surprise before you have asked. A gift that ignores their doctor's advice is not a kind one. Ask first, and let them tell you what they were told.

Bottom line

Biltong is cured, air-dried, ready-to-eat beef. Whether it fits your pregnancy is a medical question we will not guess at. Bring the label and the questions above to your doctor or midwife, and follow their advice over ours. When you are ready to browse, the full range is at Buy Biltong Online, and our kosher beef jerky page covers Meat Candy.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I eat biltong while pregnant?

We cannot say. It is a question for your doctor or midwife. Bring the label and the question list on this page.

Is biltong cooked?

No. Biltong is cured and air-dried, not cooked the way jerky is. Meat Candy, our jerky, is cooked and glazed.

What is in Grub biltong?

Original is grass-fed kosher beef, coriander, black pepper, salt, garlic and vinegar. Peri Peri and Loaded Garlic add to that; their full lists are above. Always read the bag in your hand.

Should I ask my doctor about the salt or spices?

If it matters to you, yes. Ask whether any ingredient on the label is one they would flag for you. Your doctor knows your health; we do not.

Does Grub give nutrition or safety advice for pregnancy?

No. We describe our product and its ingredients. Medical advice belongs to your doctor or midwife.

Is Grub biltong kosher during pregnancy?

Our biltong is certified Glatt Kosher whoever eats it. For questions about what your own practice allows during pregnancy, ask your rabbi.

Does Grub ship to my address?

Grub ships to US addresses only. US orders over $50 ship free.