Here is a cut and paste of an email that one of our members MikeC got on the issue of grading and double muscled animals:
"Dear Mr. Cxxxxx,
Thank you for your email dated November 6, 2007, regarding the grading specifications for double muscled animals. The US Standards for Carcass Beef have no provisions for conformation as a requirement for quality or yield grading. Most double muscled animals are generally lean and would qualify for the higher (Yield Grade 1 or 2) yield grades. Also because double muscled animals are very lean, the quality grades on double muscled animals could be lower (US Standard or US Select); however, the grading standards do not classify double muscled animals into any “inferior†classification. All carcasses are quality graded with the same factors, such as bone maturity, lean maturity and firmness, and marbling; yield graded with the same factors, such as carcass weight, external fat thickness, ribeye size, and kidney, heart, and pelvic fat percentage, regardless of muscling The following is a link to the standards, under Carcass Beef, for your review:
http://www.ams.usda.gov/lsg/stand/st-pubs.htm If you have further questions, please feel free to contact me.
Sincerely,
Larry R. Meadows, Chief
USDA, MRP, AMS, LS
Meat Grading & Certification Branch
720-497-2550
For those interested.......................... My name has been X'ed to protect the innocent. "
If you will do a search, see the top of the page and input the subject such as double muscled cattle and hit the search button you will find posts on the subject.
There have been bull tests done by Montana Ranch brand folks, and they are currently doing one again. There is another bull test going on by Kansas State with a group of bulls from the PAUS association members.
There is a market for these cattle.