CAB to modify standards
The Certified Angus Beef LLC board of directors voted last week to adjust certain CAB brand specifications. In place of a longstanding Yield Grade 3.9 limit, the board voted to adopt more specific size standards. The new specifications will call for ribeye area of 10 to 16 square inches and carcass weight less than 1,000 pounds. It also instructed the CAB staff to investigate limits on external fat thickness to refine compositional consistency. According to a CAB release, the brand specifications already address the issue of insufficient marbling, which the 2005 National Beef Quality Audit identified as the top concern of foodservice and retail customers. "This change," says John Stika, CAB vice president for business development, "would take aim at the next two on that list: cut weights too heavy and lack of uniformity." For more information, go to http://www.drovers.com.
The CAB release notes that since 1978, the average weight of a U.S. beef carcass has increased by nearly 6 pounds per year for a total of 165 pounds. As weights increased, ribeye size had to grow proportionately for carcasses to remain below Yield Grade 4. As a result, some carcasses can meet CAB specs for grade and yield, but are too large to fit the needs of CAB foodservice customers. This change will allow some YG 4 carcasses to qualify for CAB, but should provide more uniformity where it matters most – on the plate. — J.M.
The Certified Angus Beef LLC board of directors voted last week to adjust certain CAB brand specifications. In place of a longstanding Yield Grade 3.9 limit, the board voted to adopt more specific size standards. The new specifications will call for ribeye area of 10 to 16 square inches and carcass weight less than 1,000 pounds. It also instructed the CAB staff to investigate limits on external fat thickness to refine compositional consistency. According to a CAB release, the brand specifications already address the issue of insufficient marbling, which the 2005 National Beef Quality Audit identified as the top concern of foodservice and retail customers. "This change," says John Stika, CAB vice president for business development, "would take aim at the next two on that list: cut weights too heavy and lack of uniformity." For more information, go to http://www.drovers.com.
The CAB release notes that since 1978, the average weight of a U.S. beef carcass has increased by nearly 6 pounds per year for a total of 165 pounds. As weights increased, ribeye size had to grow proportionately for carcasses to remain below Yield Grade 4. As a result, some carcasses can meet CAB specs for grade and yield, but are too large to fit the needs of CAB foodservice customers. This change will allow some YG 4 carcasses to qualify for CAB, but should provide more uniformity where it matters most – on the plate. — J.M.
