VOL. I · 2026 · EVIDENCE-LED SUPPLEMENT RESEARCHUSA & GLOBAL EDITION
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Ancestral Supplements Beef Liver

Ancestral Supplements

DIRECT COMPARISON · 2026

vs

Both scored 9 / 10 FSP

Heart & Soil Beef Organs

Heart & Soil

FITLAB INDEPENDENT COMPARISON · Last updated May 2026

Ancestral Supplements vs Heart & Soil — Which Should You Buy?

Both brands score 9/10 on the Fitlab Scoring Protocol and dominate the premium beef organ supplement market. The decision comes down to one question: do you need Informed Sport drug-testing certification, or do you prioritise verifiable NZ sourcing with batch-specific COA data?

Ancestral Supplements Beef Liver
COA Published ✓

Ancestral Supplements

Ancestral Supplements Beef Liver

Founded by Brian Johnson (independent; formerly Liver King)

9/10Exceptional

Price/serving

$1.50

Price/bottle

$45

Caps/serving

6

Organs

Liver-focused

Best for

Sourcing-conscious buyers who want NZ provenance + verifiable COA

Best for buyers who prioritise supply-chain documentation over certification badges. NZ sourcing + published COAs is genuinely hard to beat.

Heart & Soil Beef Organs
Informed Sport ✓

Heart & Soil

Heart & Soil Beef Organs

Founded by Dr. Paul Saladino (Carnivore MD)

9/10Exceptional

Price/serving

$1.83

Price/bottle

$55

Caps/serving

6

Organs

5-organ blend

Best for

Drug-tested athletes, those wanting nose-to-tail multi-organ coverage

Best for athletes who need batch-tested purity and for buyers who want a single product covering all five major organs.

§ 01Specs

Side-by-side breakdown

MetricAncestral SupplementsHeart & Soil
Price / bottle$45$55
Price / serving$1.50$1.83
Caps / serving66
Organs includedLiver-focused (1 main)5-organ blend
SourcingNZ grass-fed (verified)US regenerative (named farms)
ProcessingFreeze-driedFreeze-dried
Informed Sport cert.NoYes ✓
Heavy metal COAYes ✓ (batch-level)Yes ✓ (public)
Individual organ dosesDisclosed ✓Proprietary blend ✗
Fillers / additivesNone ✓None ✓
Grass-fed verifiedNZ pasture (certified)US regenerative (named)
Retinol riskHigher (liver-only)Lower (diluted)

· Orange dot = winner in that category

§ 02Nutrient Coverage

What each product actually provides

The organ composition determines your nutrient profile. Ancestral's liver-focus gives you very high retinol, B12, folate, and copper. Heart & Soil's 5-organ blend adds CoQ10 (heart), selenium (kidney), enzymes (pancreas), and tuftsin (spleen) at the cost of some depth in the liver nutrients.

NutrientBest SourceAncestralHeart & Soil
Retinol (Vitamin A)Liver✓✓✓ Very High✓✓ High
Vitamin B12Liver + Kidney✓✓✓ Very High✓✓ High
FolateLiver✓✓✓ Very High✓✓ Moderate
Heme IronLiver + Spleen✓✓ High✓✓ High
CoQ10HeartTrace only✓✓ High
SeleniumKidneyTrace only✓✓ Moderate
CopperLiver✓✓✓ Very High✓✓ Moderate
Digestive EnzymesPancreasNot present✓ Present
Tuftsin (peptide)SpleenNot in main SKU✓ Present
CholineLiver✓✓✓ Very High✓✓ High

Green = winner in that nutrient. Estimates based on organ composition at standard serving doses.

§ 03Key Differentiator

The sourcing question

Ancestral Supplements

Ancestral Supplements

New Zealand, batch-verified

New Zealand is widely considered the highest regulatory standard for beef organ supplements. NZ has strict controls on pesticide use, antibiotic restriction, and pasture requirements. Ancestral publishes batch-specific COAs covering lead, cadmium, mercury, and arsenic — you can verify the exact lot you purchased. This level of traceability is rare in the supplement industry.

NZ Ministry of Primary Industries oversight

Year-round pasture feeding (climate default)

Batch-level heavy metal COA published

Exact organ dose per capsule disclosed

Heart & Soil

Heart & Soil

US regenerative, Informed Sport tested

Heart & Soil sources from named US regenerative farms, visible on their website. Regenerative agriculture goes beyond organic — it focuses on soil health, carbon sequestration, and animal welfare. Informed Sport certification adds a separate layer of quality assurance: every batch is independently tested against 200+ WADA-prohibited substances, which matters more than sourcing for competitive athletes.

Named US regenerative farms (farm-to-capsule transparency)

Informed Sport batch certification (200+ substances)

5-organ blend: liver, heart, kidney, spleen, pancreas

Heavy metal COA published alongside certification

§ 04Price Analysis

Value & cost comparison

Per serving

Ancestral

$1.50

Heart & Soil

$1.83

Per month (daily use)

Ancestral

$45

Heart & Soil

$55

Per year (daily use)

Ancestral

$540

Heart & Soil

$660

Annual premium for H&S

Ancestral

Heart & Soil

+$120/year

Is the $120/year Heart & Soil premium worth it?For drug-tested athletes: yes, absolutely — Informed Sport batch testing is not optional in that context. For general users: Ancestral's NZ sourcing and batch COA provide strong quality assurance at a lower price. The premium only makes sense if you specifically need certification documentation.

§ 05Category Winners

Who wins each round

Sourcing Transparency
Ancestral Supplements
NZ sourcing with published batch-level COA is the gold standard. Ancestral discloses the exact lot you're consuming.
Third-Party Certification
Heart & Soil
Informed Sport certification tests every batch for 200+ WADA-banned substances. Essential for drug-tested athletes.
Organ Variety
Heart & Soil
5-organ blend vs liver-focused Ancestral lineup. More comprehensive micronutrient coverage across CoQ10, selenium, enzymes.
Price per Serving
Ancestral Supplements
$1.50 vs $1.83 — Ancestral is 18% cheaper per serving. Saves ~$120/year if you take it daily.
Label Transparency
Ancestral Supplements
Ancestral discloses exact organ weight per capsule. Heart & Soil uses a proprietary blend — individual organ doses unknown.
Retinol Safety
Heart & Soil
Liver-only formulas carry higher retinol risk. 5-organ dilution reduces this — safer for daily use and for those concerned about vitamin A toxicity.
Community Trust
Tie
Both brands are trusted in carnivore and ancestral health communities. Heart & Soil benefits from Dr. Saladino's audience; Ancestral from its longer track record.
FDA Compliance
Heart & Soil
Ancestral received an FDA warning letter in 2025 over marketing claims. Heart & Soil has a cleaner compliance record.

CONTEXT: THE 2025 FDA WARNING LETTER — ANCESTRAL SUPPLEMENTS

In 2025, Ancestral Supplements received an FDA warning letter. This is frequently misrepresented online:

The warning was about structure/function claims on their website — language implying the products treat or cure disease, which requires FDA drug approval.

It was NOT about contamination, safety failures, or product quality. No recall was issued.

The FDA issues hundreds of similar letters to supplement companies annually — it's a marketing compliance issue, not a product indictment.

Ancestral updated their website claims in response. Their COA transparency, sourcing, and formulations remain unchanged.

§ 06Bottom Line

Which one should you buy?

Choose Ancestral If…

Ancestral Supplements

Ancestral Supplements

  • Sourcing provenance is your top priority
  • You want batch-specific COA data for your exact lot
  • You prefer single-organ liver purity and depth
  • Budget matters — 18% cheaper, saves ~$120/year
  • You're not a drug-tested competitive athlete
  • Disclosed individual organ doses matter to you

Choose Heart & Soil If…

Heart & Soil

Heart & Soil

  • You're a drug-tested competitive athlete (Informed Sport is non-negotiable)
  • You want nose-to-tail nutrition from a single product
  • CoQ10 (heart) and selenium (kidney) matter to you
  • Third-party certification is your primary trust signal
  • Price is secondary to purity documentation
§ 07FAQ

Common questions

Are Ancestral Supplements and Heart & Soil the same quality?

Both are premium brands with verified NZ or US regenerative sourcing and published COA data. The key differences: Ancestral has better sourcing transparency (NZ + batch COA + disclosed organ doses); Heart & Soil has Informed Sport certification and a more comprehensive 5-organ blend. Neither is clearly 'better' overall — it depends on your priorities.

Which is better for drug-tested athletes?

Heart & Soil, without question. It's the only beef organ supplement with Informed Sport certification — every batch is tested against WADA's prohibited substance list. If you're in a tested sport, this isn't a preference issue: Ancestral Supplements has no batch-level drug testing whatsoever.

Which has better sourcing transparency?

Ancestral Supplements. Their New Zealand pasture-raised sourcing is the most documented in the category — they publish batch-specific COAs for heavy metals (lead, cadmium, mercury, arsenic) and you can look up the specific lot number on your bottle. Heart & Soil's US regenerative sourcing is credible and they name the farms, but NZ regulatory standards are generally considered the global benchmark for organ supplement sourcing.

Can I take both together?

Not recommended without medical supervision. Both are high in retinol (preformed vitamin A from liver). Stacking them could push you over the tolerable upper intake level of 10,000 IU/day for preformed vitamin A — particularly with Ancestral's liver-focused formula. If you want to combine products, choose one brand as your primary and consult a physician about your total retinol intake.

Which gives more CoQ10?

Heart & Soil wins significantly here. CoQ10 is concentrated in cardiac muscle — beef heart is the dietary source. Ancestral's liver-only formula contains negligible CoQ10. Heart & Soil's 5-organ blend includes beef heart, which is the reason organ supplements are often recommended for mitochondrial and cardiovascular support.

What's the FDA warning letter about for Ancestral Supplements?

In 2025, the FDA issued a warning letter regarding structure/function claims on Ancestral's website — specifically, language implying their products diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent disease (which requires FDA drug approval). This is a marketing compliance issue, not a product safety failure. The FDA issues similar letters to hundreds of supplement companies annually. Ancestral's COA data, sourcing transparency, and product quality are unaffected. They updated their website claims in response.

Which is better value for money?

Ancestral Supplements at $1.50/serving vs Heart & Soil at $1.83/serving. The $0.33/serving difference compounds to roughly $120/year. Whether that premium is worth it depends on what you're buying: for athletes who need Informed Sport certification, Heart & Soil's premium is justified. For general use, Ancestral's value is excellent given NZ sourcing quality and COA transparency.

DISCLOSURE: This comparison contains affiliate links. We earn a small commission if you purchase via our links at no extra cost to you. Scores and editorial judgements are independent of affiliate arrangements. Full disclosure →

§ 08See Also

Related content

Best Beef Organ Supplements — Carnivore Diet (2026)

Full 9-product category roundup with FSP rankings.

Ancestral Supplements Review — Full FSP Analysis

Deep-dive review with COA analysis, nutrient breakdown, and verdict.

Heart & Soil Review — Full FSP Analysis

Detailed review: Informed Sport certification, 5-organ formulation, and value assessment.

Organ Supplement Reviews Hub

All 9 organ supplement reviews ranked by FSP score.