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Raw beef liver slices

Beef liver, raw

Checked by us 135 kcal per 100 g

Protein, plus vitamin B12 and vitamin A. Rich in 8 more nutrients: see Good for.

Worth knowing: dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs, copper and preformed vitamin A.

Worth knowing for some people: alpha-gal syndrome; vitamin A in pregnancy.

Good for

How we counted this

What 100 g gives you: imported foods have no serving size yet.

Your body needs enough of each of these. Past enough, more doesn’t help. Amounts are what the food databases list, not what your body absorbs, unless a row says it was measured.

The words: “A lot” means one serving gives 20% or more of Health Canada’s daily amount, “Some” 10% to 19%, “A little” 2% to 9%, “Almost none” under 2%. Strongest word first; within a word, protein and fibre lead, then the biggest share.

A milligram (mg) is a thousandth of a gram, and a microgram (µg) a thousandth of a milligram: 1,000 µg make 1 mg.

11 more nutrients below “a lot”

Watch out

How we counted this
  • Dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs

    Worth knowingEFSA 2026, European liver, upper bound

    An average adult is already at or past the limit from other food.

    Learn more

    Flagged: the tolerable weekly intake for dioxins and PCBs is 42 pg a week at 70 kg (EFSA 2026, WHO 2022 toxic equivalents). On the upper-bound European mean of 0.11 pg/g (522 samples), about 382 g of raw liver a week would reach it, and a 100 g serving is 26% of the weekly limit. It pairs with the lower-bound row to give the two bounds.

    How we got this
  • 1 other measurement of this food, same verdict
  • Copper

    Worth knowing

    Rated “Limit it” on beef liver, pan-fried. Not measured on this preparation, so that’s our closest guide. See that page

    Learn more
    How we got this

    As rated on beef liver, pan-fried: Weekly or less: EFSA's acceptable daily intake for copper is 0.07 mg/kg body weight/day, 5 mg a day for adults, set so that no copper is expected to build up in the liver. Eaten alone, about 33.6 g of cooked liver in a day would reach it (4.9 mg for 70 kg at 0.14588 mg per g); Health Canada's upper intake level is 10,000 µg/day (68.6 g). One 100 g serving carries 14.6 mg, 3.0 times EFSA's daily value and 1.5 times the Canadian level. It is a chronic daily limit. Separately, EFSA's 2024 opinion on vitamin A finds that Europeans are unlikely to exceed the vitamin A upper level if liver and offal are eaten once a month or less; that advice is about vitamin A, not copper.

    USDA FoodData Central, SR Legacy, 2018-04 · grade C

    Every food with copper

  • Rated “Limit it” on beef liver, pan-fried. Not measured on this preparation, so that’s our closest guide. See that page

    Learn more
    How we got this

    As rated on beef liver, pan-fried: Weekly or less: the tolerable upper intake level (UL) for preformed vitamin A is 3,000 µg RE a day (EFSA 2024; Health Canada 3,000 µg RAE, preformed only), set against birth defects. Eaten alone, about 38.8 g of cooked liver in one day would reach it if nothing else supplies retinol, and one 100 g serving is 2.6 times the daily UL. EFSA states populations are unlikely to exceed the UL if liver is eaten once a month or less. Averaged over a week, one 100 g serving (retinol 7,728 µg, USDA) is 1,104 µg a day, 37% of the daily UL; EFSA and CoFID figures run 2.2 to 2.4 times higher and average about 90% or more. Retinol in liver varies several-fold by species, feed and country, so 38.8 g is an upper bound on grams (16 to 17 g on those figures).

    USDA FoodData Central, SR Legacy, 2018-04 · grade C

    Every food with preformed vitamin A (retinol)

For some people

  • Measured, not rated: 219.8 mg purines

    Learn more

    If you have gout: avoiding organ meats such as liver, which are higher in purines, is one of the diet changes that help lower uric acid in the blood and the number of flares, according to the US National Institutes of Health (NIH).

    Source: NIAMS (NIH), Gout: diagnosis, treatment, and steps to take

    How we got this

    Not rated for people with gout or hyperuricemia: the only reference is a Japanese dietary recommendation of 400 mg purines a day, seen through Kaneko 2014 rather than an agency document, so no reference is established. Raw beef liver measures 219.8 mg purines per 100 g (HPLC, Kaneko 2014, four purine bases). For scale only, 400 mg would be reached at about 182 g.

    Kaneko K, et al. (2014) Total purine and purine base content of common foodstuffs for facilitating nutritional therapy for gout and hyperuricemia. Biol Pharm Bull 37(5):709-721 · grade B

    Every food with purines and gout

  • Listed for beef liver, pan-fried; applies here too. See that page

    Flagged for people with alpha-gal syndrome: mammalian meat, including organ meats, is a trigger. The CDC's products page names organ meats; its about page lists beef, pork, lamb, venison and rabbit.

  • Listed for beef liver, pan-fried; applies here too. See that page

    Flagged for women who are or plan to be pregnant: EFSA 2024 advises against eating liver products, and the Public Health Agency of Canada advises limiting liver. Neither states a dose; the 3,000 µg RE upper intake level (38.8 g of this liver) is the figure to count against. The agencies differ in strength, and the human data conflict on the main teratogenic metabolite, all-trans retinoic acid: Buss 1994 found it up to 20 times lower after calf liver than after a supplement of the same retinol dose, while van Vliet 2001 found it, to a lesser extent, higher after liver paste. van Vliet 2001 and Hartmann 2005 both found 13-cis metabolites higher after liver.

Better options

How we counted this

“Better” here always means better at something the row names: more of one nutrient, more nutrients per serving, or the goal you pick. It never means better in every way.

This food has no serving size, so every amount below is for 100 g of each food, and a swap compares like with like. A serving of another food can be bigger or smaller.

Compared with the other main-dish proteins we’ve checked.

A food is listed only if it gives clearly more: at least a fifth more than this food, and at least 10% of the daily amount more.

More of what it’s good for

More protein

  • Chicken breast, roasted31 g in 100 g (this food: 20.4 g) · but less vitamin B12 and vitamin A
  • Pork chop, pan-fried27.6 g in 100 g (this food: 20.4 g) · but less vitamin B12 and vitamin AWorth knowing: dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs · this food has it tooNeeds care in handling: see its page

Amounts as listed, not adjusted for how much gets in.

For vitamin B12: Clams, cooked would lead, in the same 100 g, but is left out (Cadmium: limit it).

For vitamin A: Beef liver, pan-fried would lead, in the same 100 g, but is left out (Copper: limit it).

More nutrients per serving, counted together

The other main-dish proteins we’ve checked with more nutrients per serving than this one, counting at most 100 kcal. One score ranks them all, so the same few often lead.

  • Shrimp, cooked
    • More omega-3: EPA + DHA (276 mg vs 0 mg)
    • More selenium (49.5 µg vs 39.7 µg)
    • More vitamin E (2.2 mg vs 0.38 mg)
    • Less vitamin B12 (1.66 µg vs 59.3 µg)
    • Less vitamin A (90 µg vs 4,968 µg)
    Worth knowing: dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs · this food has it too
  • Sardines, canned in oil
    • More omega-3: EPA + DHA (982 mg vs 0 mg)
    • More calcium (382 mg vs 5 mg)
    • More omega-3: ALA (498 mg vs 16 mg)
    • Less vitamin B12 (8.94 µg vs 59.3 µg)
    • Less vitamin A (32 µg vs 4,968 µg)
    Worth knowing: dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs · this food has it too
  • Mackerel, cooked
    • More omega-3: EPA + DHA (1,203 mg vs 0 mg)
    • More selenium (51.6 µg vs 39.7 µg)
    • More magnesium (97 mg vs 18 mg)
    • Less vitamin B12 (19 µg vs 59.3 µg)
    • Less vitamin A (54 µg vs 4,968 µg)
    Worth knowing: dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs · this food has it too

Where the calcium card measured that less calcium gets in than from milk, calcium counts for less; everything else is as listed.

Your goal

Your goal changes only this list, not what the food gives you or what to watch.

Losing weight: fewer calories, and more nutrients, protein and fibre for each calorie.

Chicken liver, simmered would lead this list, but it’s left out (Preformed vitamin A (retinol): limit it).

Why some foods aren’t suggested

Left out: Clams, cooked (Cadmium: limit it).

Left out: Beef liver, pan-fried (Copper: limit it).

Left out: Chicken liver, simmered (Preformed vitamin A (retinol): limit it).

Bring a tracker export or describe your usual week. The same rules check all of it.

The numbers

Open every value

Name in the database: Beef liver, raw

Listed nutrients, per 100 g

For each nutrient, the value this page uses is marked “used”. A row marked “second database” is another database’s figure for a matching food, kept so you can see how far databases disagree (they can differ in the samples analysed, lab methods and rounding). Its own cells are worked out from it, but none of the page’s words or scores are.

NutrientPer 100 caloriesHowSourceGrade
Omega-3: ALA0.016 g0.01 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Calcium5 mg3.7 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
5 mg3.7 mgcopy of USDA · not usedCanadian Nutrient File 2026 #2788C
Carbohydrate3.89 g2.88 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Choline333.3 mg246.89 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Energy135 kcal–FDC Energy (kcal) usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy)–
Omega-3: EPA + DHA0 g0 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Fat3.63 g2.69 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Cholesterol275 mg203.7 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Fatty acids, total saturated1.233 g0.91 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Fibre0 g0 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Folate290 µg214.81 µglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Iron4.9 mg3.63 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Magnesium18 mg13.33 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Niacin (B3, niacin equivalents)17.558 mg13.01 mglisted usedCanadian Nutrient File 2026 #2788C
Phosphorus387 mg286.67 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Potassium313 mg231.85 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Protein20.36 g15.08 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Riboflavin (B2)2.755 mg2.04 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Selenium39.7 µg29.41 µglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Sodium69 mg51.11 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Sugars0 g0 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Thiamin (B1)0.189 mg0.14 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Vitamin A4,968 µg3,680 µglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Vitamin B1259.3 µg43.93 µglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Vitamin B61.083 mg0.8 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Vitamin C1.3 mg0.96 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Vitamin D1.2 µg0.89 µglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Vitamin E0.38 mg0.28 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Vitamin K13.1 µg2.3 µglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Water70.81 g52.45 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Zinc4 mg2.96 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
NutrientPer 100 gPer 100 caloriesHowSourceGrade
Beta-carotene232 µg171.85 µglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Copper9.755 mg7.23 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Ash1.31 g0.97 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Alcohol, ethyl0 g0 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Caffeine0 mg0 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Theobromine0 mg0 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Energy564 kj417.78 kjlisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Vitamin A, IU16,898 iu12,517.04 iulisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Carotene, alpha11 µg8.15 µglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Vitamin D (D2 + D3), International Units49 iu36.3 iulisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol)1.2 µg0.89 µglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Cryptoxanthin, beta13 µg9.63 µglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Lycopene0 µg0 µglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Tocopherol, beta0 mg0 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Tocopherol, gamma0.07 mg0.05 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Tocopherol, delta0 mg0 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Tocotrienol, alpha0 mg0 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Tocotrienol, beta0 mg0 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Tocotrienol, gamma0 mg0 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Tocotrienol, delta0 mg0 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Vitamin K (Dihydrophylloquinone)0 µg0 µglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Folic acid0 µg0 µglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Folate, food290 µg214.81 µglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Folate, DFE290 µg214.81 µglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Betaine4.4 mg3.26 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Tryptophan0.263 g0.19 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Threonine0.869 g0.64 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Isoleucine0.967 g0.72 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Leucine1.91 g1.41 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Lysine1.607 g1.19 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Methionine0.543 g0.4 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Cystine0.376 g0.28 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Phenylalanine1.084 g0.8 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Tyrosine0.807 g0.6 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Valine1.26 g0.93 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Arginine1.241 g0.92 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Histidine0.629 g0.47 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Alanine1.164 g0.86 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Aspartic acid1.927 g1.43 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Glutamic acid2.612 g1.93 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Glycine1.164 g0.86 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Proline0.961 g0.71 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Serine0.905 g0.67 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Hydroxyproline0.046 g0.03 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Vitamin E, added0 mg0 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Vitamin B-12, added0 µg0 µglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Fatty acids, total trans0.17 g0.13 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
SFA 4:00 g0 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
SFA 6:00 g0 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
SFA 8:00 g0 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
SFA 10:00 g0 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
SFA 12:00 g0 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
SFA 14:00.015 g0.01 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
SFA 16:00.312 g0.23 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
SFA 18:00.862 g0.64 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
SFA 20:00 g0 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
MUFA 18:10.423 g0.31 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
PUFA 18:20.299 g0.22 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
PUFA 18:30.016 g0.01 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
PUFA 20:40.141 g0.1 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
PUFA 22:6 n-3 (DHA)0 g0 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
SFA 22:00.009 g0.01 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
MUFA 14:10 g0 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
MUFA 16:10.036 g0.03 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
PUFA 18:40 g0 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
MUFA 20:10.007 g0.01 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
PUFA 20:5 n-3 (EPA)0 g0 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
MUFA 22:10 g0 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
PUFA 22:5 n-3 (DPA)0 g0 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Fatty acids, total monounsaturated0.479 g0.35 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Fatty acids, total polyunsaturated0.465 g0.34 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
SFA 15:00.007 g0.01 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
SFA 17:00.03 g0.02 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
PUFA 20:2 n-6 c,c0.01 g0.01 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
PUFA 18:2 n-6 c,c0.299 g0.22 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
PUFA 18:3 n-6 c,c,c0.009 g0.01 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
MUFA 17:10.013 g0.01 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
PUFA 20:30 g0 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
MUFA 15:10 g0 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
PUFA 18:3 n-3 c,c,c (ALA)0.007 g0.01 glisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Lutein + zeaxanthin0 µg0 µglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Manganese0.31 mg0.23 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Niacin (B3, preformed)13.175 mg9.76 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Pantothenic acid (B5)7.173 mg5.31 mglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C
Retinol4,948 µg3,665.19 µglisted usedUS food database (USDA SR Legacy) #169451C

Change the amount to rescale the first column. Nutrients a database doesn't list are missing, not zero.

Hazard rows as the dataset rates them

  • Dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs · Worth knowing · Flagged: EFSA's 2026 tolerable weekly intake for dioxins and PCBs is 0.6 pg WHO 2022 toxic equivalents/kg body weight/week, 42 pg a week at 70 kg. On the European lower-bound mean of 0.10 pg/g (522 samples, whole weight, as sampled), about 420 g of raw liver a week would reach it, an upper bound on the grams (382 g at the upper bound of 0.11). A 100 g serving carries 10 pg, 24% of the weekly limit. These are European data; Canada's CFIA survey has no liver sample. · EFSA 2026 · A
  • Dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs · Worth knowing · Flagged: the tolerable weekly intake for dioxins and PCBs is 42 pg a week at 70 kg (EFSA 2026, WHO 2022 toxic equivalents). On the upper-bound European mean of 0.11 pg/g (522 samples), about 382 g of raw liver a week would reach it, and a 100 g serving is 26% of the weekly limit. It pairs with the lower-bound row to give the two bounds. · EFSA 2026 · A
  • Purines and gout · Not rated yet · Not rated for people with gout or hyperuricemia: the only reference is a Japanese dietary recommendation of 400 mg purines a day, seen through Kaneko 2014 rather than an agency document, so no reference is established. Raw beef liver measures 219.8 mg purines per 100 g (HPLC, Kaneko 2014, four purine bases). For scale only, 400 mg would be reached at about 182 g. · Kaneko 2014 · B
  • Safe cooking temperature · Worth knowing · Flagged for cooking: cook beef liver to 71 °C (160 °F). Health Canada's chart has no liver row; 71 °C is its figure for ground beef and for beef pieces cooked to medium. · Health Canada, safe cooking temperatures · A

Sources

Body map 2026-10-25.1: each nutrient’s job comes from an agency fact sheet, linked beside it under Good for.

The plain words: “a lot” means one serving (100 g when the food has no serving size) gives at least 20% of the daily amount (the reference intake), “some” at least 10%, “a little” at least 2% (the cut-offs are ours, one set for every page: 20% and 10% are borrowed from the US labelling terms “high” and “good source” and applied to Health Canada’s daily amount, whereas Health Canada’s own shopper rule says 15%; provisional: they may change in a later method version). The daily amount is Health Canada’s Dietary Reference Intake for adults 19–30; where men and women need different amounts we use the higher one (protein: 56 g for men, 46 g for women). The percentage printed under each nutrient is the printed amount as a share of that daily amount, rounded to the nearest whole number, and the word is read from that percentage, so the amount, the percentage and the word always agree. Calcium with a measured absorption is scaled by how well it gets in compared with milk.

The scale: “Nothing to watch” means a serving a day stays under the limit at ordinary amounts; “Go easy” means a serving a day can push past the limit for adults who already take in the most, or fewer than 2 servings reach it; “Limit it” means once a week or less. The dataset’s own rating is under “How we got this”. Provisional: the scale may change in a later method version.

Measured absorption under Good for: grade-A studies in adults that tested this preparation of this food, as a share of the listed amount (the share digested, for protein), quoted once each source has passed our evidence check; animal studies and other variants stay in the table above. Provisional: this screen may change in a later method version.