Quality of the meat?

[Onthebit]

I am wondering about the quality of the meat produced by the dif. breeds....seems to me when I go to the store they advertise Black Angus and charge a premium for it....once it is on my plate how can I tell it is black angus and not a hereford? I used to buy meat from an organic producer who raises Belgium Blues but he bred them to angus to put back fat on them......would a black charolais taste better than a white one? With so many dif. breeds out there I am wondering if there are taste facts associated with them...I know that lots of marbling makes the meat taste better, but herefords marble supperior and why did they fall out of favor? I have 2 rather large Dexter steers in the barn, Is the black one going to taste better than the red one? (all things being equal)

 

[ALACOWMAN]

I am wondering about the quality of the meat produced by the dif. breeds....seems to me when I go to the store they advertise Black Angus and charge a premium for it....once it is on my plate how can I tell it is black angus and not a hereford? I used to buy meat from an organic producer who raises Belgium Blues but he bred them to angus to put back fat on them......would a black charolais taste better than a white one? With so many dif. breeds out there I am wondering if there are taste facts associated with them...I know that lots of marbling makes the meat taste better, but herefords marble supperior and why did they fall out of favor? I have 2 rather large Dexter steers in the barn, Is the black one going to taste better than the red one? (all things being equal)

nope... would it sell better? thats what their shootin' for

 

[Frankie]

I am wondering about the quality of the meat produced by the dif. breeds....seems to me when I go to the store they advertise Black Angus and charge a premium for it....once it is on my plate how can I tell it is black angus and not a hereford? I used to buy meat from an organic producer who raises Belgium Blues but he bred them to angus to put back fat on them......would a black charolais taste better than a white one? With so many dif. breeds out there I am wondering if there are taste facts associated with them...I know that lots of marbling makes the meat taste better, but herefords marble supperior and why did they fall out of favor? I have 2 rather large Dexter steers in the barn, Is the black one going to taste better than the red one? (all things being equal)

First things first: Cooking can affect your eating experience, not just the quality of the beef. But
MARC has data showing the more Brahman influence in a carcass, the more likely it will be tough. The higher quality grade a carcass, the more likely it will be tender. One in four Select grade steaks will probably not be tender. I think it's one in six Choice steaks and it's practically unheard of for a Prime grade steak to be tough.

The last time I saw a figure there were about 40 branded beef items in the supermarket containing the word "Angus" in their name. The only one that belongs to the American Angus Association is the Certified Angus Beef (CAB) Brand. It's a USDA certified product. Most of the beef you see in the supermarket with "Angus" on them isn't USDA certified, they're using the name for marketing purposes.

When Angus cattle first came to the US, they were considered an oddity because they didn't have horns. But when feeders saw how well they gained, they became more popular. Plus they've always had a reputation for quality carcass (marbling). Are you familiar with EPDs? Most breeds these days have EPDs that will help to identify which animals in the breed will give you the most marbling.

Will your black steer taste better than the red one? Depends on their genetic make up and management. Let us know. There are several Hereford people posting here that can probably address why they fell out of favor. I'm an Angus breeder, but IMO, the Hereford people spent a lot of money fighting between Polled and Horned instead of promoting the breed. They were late starting their branded beef program (CHB). They chase the show ring too much and don't pay enough attention convenience traits (calving ease, udders). Some influencial breeders charge too much for AI certificates, thus cutting down the use of AI in the breed. I think stressing the Hereford breed's feed efficiency reputation is a good move for the Association, if it's not too late.

 

[ALACOWMAN]

I am wondering about the quality of the meat produced by the dif. breeds....seems to me when I go to the store they advertise Black Angus and charge a premium for it....once it is on my plate how can I tell it is black angus and not a hereford? I used to buy meat from an organic producer who raises Belgium Blues but he bred them to angus to put back fat on them......would a black charolais taste better than a white one? With so many dif. breeds out there I am wondering if there are taste facts associated with them...I know that lots of marbling makes the meat taste better, but herefords marble supperior and why did they fall out of favor? I have 2 rather large Dexter steers in the barn, Is the black one going to taste better than the red one? (all things being equal)

First things first: Cooking can affect your eating experience, not just the quality of the beef. But
MARC has data showing the more Brahman influence in a carcass, the more likely it will be tough. The higher quality grade a carcass, the more likely it will be tender. One in four Select grade steaks will probably not be tender. I think it's one in six Choice steaks and it's practically unheard of for a Prime grade steak to be tough.

The last time I saw a figure there were about 40 branded beef items in the supermarket containing the word "Angus" in their name. The only one that belongs to the American Angus Association is the Certified Angus Beef (CAB) Brand. It's a USDA certified product. Most of the beef you see in the supermarket with "Angus" on them isn't USDA certified, they're using the name for marketing purposes.

When Angus cattle first came to the US, they were considered an oddity because they didn't have horns. But when feeders saw how well they gained, they became more popular. Plus they've always had a reputation for quality carcass (marbling). Are you familiar with EPDs? Most breeds these days have EPDs that will help to identify which animals in the breed will give you the most marbling.

Will your black steer taste better than the red one? Depends on their genetic make up and management. Let us know. There are several Hereford people posting here that can probably address why they fell out of favor. I'm an Angus breeder, but IMO, the Hereford people spent a lot of money fighting between Polled and Horned instead of promoting the breed. They were late starting their branded beef program (CHB). They chase the show ring too much and don't pay enough attention convenience traits (calving ease, udders). Some influencial breeders charge too much for AI certificates, thus cutting down the uI think stressing the Hereford breed's feed efficiency reputation is a goodse of AI in the breed. move for the Association, if it's not too late.

are you kidding. with the price of grain.. it might be a shot in the arm for em

 

[wstevenl]

I'm NO expert but I believe that Aberdeen Angus became very well respected for the animal it was and for it's beef. They were/are black and this has led to a higher price for them..... this eventually led to a higher price for any black animal in the hopes that it had some Angus in it... The only real difference that I believe color causes is the non black animals can deal with the summer sun better... less heat from the sun. Your Dexters should have very good meat. I think the most important thing is that you butcher them while they are gaining weight and not loosing weight. This is why grass finishers usually harvest in early summer (after the spring lush) or late fall (after the fall lush) because the steers have been gaining well on the forage. Also I've heard that it is VERY important to keep cattle calm and stress free until they are killed ... it seems silly at first because you're about to have them killed but when they are stressed out they release a hormone that makes the meat tough. Good luck with your beef and I look forward to hearing from others with more experience than me.

 

[ROB]

i don't know how much this contibutes to the current meat sales but in our area - up until 30 or so years ago, there were a lot of hereford calves being raised. alot of farmers run hereford cows, and stockers would buy hereford calves and ship them in. very popular breed in our area at that time. then things started changing as 'grade and yield' became more relevant terms to the beef industry. although the herefords graded very well - their yields were not as consistently acceptable as the angus breed. thats when the tide started to change in the midwest. since that time, nearly every hereford operation has dissolved and was replaced with angus/angus based cattle. i wouldn't dare speculate to say that the taste of angus is better than hereford - and thats why it sells for a premium, but i would contend that at one time angus would consistently yield better than hereford, marketing strategies were implemented to command attention to that advantage, and some of the premium you see in the marketplace was derived from that marketing strategy.

ROB

 

[Bonsman]

Here is an interesting article from Texas A&M on beef quality. I hope I can get the link correct.

http://www.smith-bonsmara.com/Images/beefquality.pdf

Well there is not link; but you can cut and paste it in your URL.

Bonsman

 

[redfornow]

the Hereford people spent a lot of money fighting between Polled and Horned instead of promoting the breed. They were late starting their branded beef program (CHB). They chase the show ring too much and don't pay enough attention convenience traits (calving ease, udders). Some influencial breeders charge too much for AI certificates, thus cutting down the use of AI in the breed. I think stressing the Hereford breed's feed efficiency reputation is a good move for the Association, if it's not too late.

I couldnt have said it better myself....

I dont think its to late, could be right on time????

We are hopin.

 

[HerefordSire]

the Hereford people spent a lot of money fighting between Polled and Horned instead of promoting the breed. They were late starting their branded beef program (CHB). They chase the show ring too much and don't pay enough attention convenience traits (calving ease, udders). Some influencial breeders charge too much for AI certificates, thus cutting down the use of AI in the breed. I think stressing the Hereford breed's feed efficiency reputation is a good move for the Association, if it's not too late.

I couldnt have said it better myself....

I dont think its to late, could be right on time????

We are hopin.

I sure am glad I am a beginning Hereford breeder. How long have you been breeding Herefords redfornow?

 

[greenwillowhereford II]

I've said this so often the regulars are no doubt tired of it, but Hereford beed has been documented to be superior to USDA average, even Hereford select compared to USDA upper 2/3 Choice. When Herefords were king, beef was king, and since then, beef has lost a lot of ground to chicken and pork. My personal experience with Herfs is that they yield better than Angus. They are known as being second to Angus in marbling, but again it has been proven that Hereford Select does not sacrifice flavor or tenderness. CSU studies in the early nineties proved this.

I agree with much of what Frankie said, although I think it strange that the black calves are preferred at a lot of shows by the judges if Hereford is chasing the showring more than Angus and other black cattle.

 

[Wewild]

Folks will start moderating their diets. Leaner meats will be looked to.

Jack Sprat could eat no fat
His wife could eat no lean.
And so between the two of them,
They licked the platter clean!

 

[Brandonm22]

I am working off of memory here so I could very well be wrong; but I believe that "Angus" (like "Hereford") IS a USDA recognized standard and for anybody too put that name on a product that it has too be certified "Angus" by the USDA so all of the 40 Angus branded programs are "certified" and not just CAB (though CAB has requirements that the other programs do not have. For example a few months back my local grocer sold "Angus Select". None of that qualifies as CAB; but it all is "certified" Angus.

 

[redfornow]

the Hereford people spent a lot of money fighting between Polled and Horned instead of promoting the breed. They were late starting their branded beef program (CHB). They chase the show ring too much and don't pay enough attention convenience traits (calving ease, udders). Some influencial breeders charge too much for AI certificates, thus cutting down the use of AI in the breed. I think stressing the Hereford breed's feed efficiency reputation is a good move for the Association, if it's not too late.

I couldnt have said it better myself....

I dont think its to late, could be right on time????

We are hopin.

I sure am glad I am a beginning Hereford breeder. How long have you been breeding Herefords redfornow?

I have been at this deal for almost 15 minutes....
Might sound like braggin to some, but in all that time not one dispersal sale!
I am hopin to last till the end of the month, but its been a hard run so who knows?

 

[Red Bull Breeder]

Onthebit your steers meat will be great, You won't be able to tell the diffrence in the two once the hide is off. Don't worry about all the angus herford talk they just want you to think they got the best. I no better i eat limi.

 

[novatech]

Choosing a breed for attaining a goal without consideration as to the individual genetic qualifications for reaching that goal is dumb.
Choosing a breed and buying individuals with the genetics that will help you meet your goal is smart.

There is always going to be a trade off when you breed for certain traits. With the high price of feed and fuel it seems as though there is a swing toward less quality and better efficiency. I am not a Hereford breeder but I do believe they will give you the efficiency while still producing an acceptable quality product.

 

[greenwillowhereford II]

Each to his own taste, of course, but when uncle put limi on his Herefords in the 80's, there was a distinct difference in the taste of the beef, and in my 10 or so year old taste buds, it was not for the better. No offense, and I'm sure progress has been made since then.

 

[Wewild]

Each to his own taste, of course, but when uncle put limi on his Herefords in the 80's, there was a distinct difference in the taste of the beef, and in my 10 or so year old taste buds, it was not for the better. No offense, and I'm sure progress has been made since then.

I'm sure there has been no change much if the Lims are sill Red. As you say, I think we can see the only good beef is hereford.

COD needs treatment.

 

[Red Bull Breeder]

Greenwillow you may not like it but i can assure the Limousin did not hurt the quailty of the meat. Limousin meat is diffrent to other breeds as it has finner fibers. It is lean but very tender and juicy with out all the fat. But each to his own thats why there is different breeds of cattle.

 

[greenwillowhereford II]

Each to his own taste, of course, but when uncle put limi on his Herefords in the 80's, there was a distinct difference in the taste of the beef, and in my 10 or so year old taste buds, it was not for the better. No offense, and I'm sure progress has been made since then.

I'm sure there has been no change much if the Lims are sill Red. As you say, I think we can see the only good beef is hereford.

Didn't say that. Again, different folks have different preferences. However, CHB has won numerous blind taste tests.
COD needs treatment.

 

[Wewild]

Each to his own taste, of course, but when uncle put limi on his Herefords in the 80's, there was a distinct difference in the taste of the beef, and in my 10 or so year old taste buds, it was not for the better. No offense, and I'm sure progress has been made since then.

I'm sure there has been no change much if the Lims are sill Red. As you say, I think we can see the only good beef is hereford.

COD needs treatment.

Didn't say that. Again, different folks have different preferences. However, CHB has won numerous blind taste tests.

Tried to clean that up a bit.

The leaner beef is coming on.