Carcass Quality

[HDRider]

I wasn't sure where to put this, so here it is...

I hear a lot of talk about carcass quality. I get the market price premium. I like the idea.

How does one set about to achieve consistent carcass quality? Is it the breed, the feed?

What ten step program puts one on the path of consistent high quality beef?

 

[dun]

We do it with genetics and rely on the feeder to maximize the potential by feeding properly.

 

[Red Bull Breeder]

Now all you got to figure out is who is going to pay you those premiums.

 

[dun]

Now all you got to figure out is who is going to pay you those premiums.

That's the catch. You pretty much have to retain at least partil ownership in most cases to get it. We rarely got CAB premiums (not very often we had black calves) but we alwasy got Sterling Silver premums. They're the same but SS is for red animals rather then black. Then there are the premiums for leaner beef rather then marbeling.

 

[HDRider]

Now all you got to figure out is who is going to pay you those premiums.

The thought I had in mind when I asked my question was for cattle I sell as freezer beef.

 

[Lucky_P]

rider,
I've got no idea how my calves grade out as feeders - we sell 'em as weanlings - but, in the event that they ever get to the point that they're able to 'trace back' to farm of origin - and want more of 'em, we're selecting for high marbling, high ribeye area, and tenderness(either shear force epds or genomic testing for 'tenderness' gene markers), when choosing AI sires - so long as those features come along with other factors we're breeding for.

 

[ibetyamissedme]

Well to be honest over 75% of the people who think they have good carcass cattle do not. But I will never convince them of the truth.

 

[Kathie in Thorp]

Now all you got to figure out is who is going to pay you those premiums.

The thought I had in mind when I asked my question was for cattle I sell as freezer beef.

HDRider, I know just about nothing about the numbers game for carcass quality/grading butcher beef. We've finished Angus-X-something, Black Baldies and British Whites for private sale to our butcher beef customers for 4 years. And all of them have been really good beef -- some fat on them, but not hog-fat. We just did 2 Baldies a few weeks ago, and have been talking to our cutter, coordinating pick up by our customers. He said he wished he was cutting our beef every time someone walked into his shop -- he likes to show off the steaks That sounds good to us. We'll just keep doing what we're doing, which is summer grass, winter hay (grass), and then 60 days finishing on alfalfa and grain, out on a 1-acre pasture so they've got some room to roam around. Our grain ratio is about 1/3 COB and the rest rolled corn, but not tons of it -- 6-7 lbs. morning and evening. On the rail, those two were 800 and 880 lbs. $3.35/lb. plus customer pays share of kill fee and his/her cut/wrap fees. We don't get rich, but they pay their way and we like having the cattle around.

 

[HDRider]

This is a good article on the subject, but you need a PhD to read it. Kind of French though.


In another study comparing two French local breeds (Aubrac, Salers) and two French beef breeds (Limousin, Charolais) no significant differences were found in eating quality due to much higher variation within breeds than between breeds. Slightly higher eating quality was, however, observed in Limousin and Aubrac cattle. Inter-breed differences in beef quality are often less pronounced than those identified within breeds and are overridden by larger differences between muscles or cuts.

http://www.ighz.edu.pl/files/objects/21 ... 73-190.pdf

 

[HDRider]

This PowerPoint goes into the subject, somewhat more understandable.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q ... 8011,d.cWc

Not sure why they don't mention some more mainstream breeds.

 

[TexasBred]

Well to be honest over 75% of the people who think they have good carcass cattle do not. But I will never convince them of the truth.

I believe it. 90% probably never shop for the highest grades of beef either. Just grab a pkg. look at the price and head for checkout.

 

[Backbone Ranch]

Good carcass quality is mostly genetics. Certain breeds have a higher prevalence of tenderness and marbling genes. To have a high quality carcass, the animal must be gaining weight every day of his life. A combination of these will result in a quality carcass. The chart below shows the quantity of tenderness genes of certain breeds.