1. Product Information: General

2.  Large, complex business  Harvesting  Average animal age = 18 to 22 months  Average animal weight = 1,300 lbs  Average carcass weight = 825 lbs  Begins 1 to 2 hours after arrival at plant  48 to 72 hours for whole process Processing & Selecting Beef

3.  4 major tissues:  Muscle  Fat  Bone  Connective tissue  Muscle is major component of meat Meat Composition

4. Meat Grading  The meat grading program is administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Beef quality grades indicate palatability characteristics such as tenderness, juiciness and flavor.  Inspection  By law, all meat must be inspected and passed for wholesomeness by the USDA  Grading  Quality grading is voluntary. Prime, Choice and Select are the most common quality grades consumers see.

5. Grade Types  Prime  Has the most marbling  It usually is sold to high-end restaurants, although some specialty meat markets and supermarkets may carry it  Choice  Tends to have a little less marbling  The most widely available grade in the market  Select  Has the least amount of marbling  It’s leaner and a little less juicy and flavorful than the other two grades

6. Grade Types

7.  First stage of fabrication = primals  4 major primals account for >75% Fabricating Primals

8.  Subprimals = primals broken down into smaller portions  Excess fat, bone removed; bone-in also available  May be purchased for further fabrication in the kitchen Fabricating Subprimals example: Ribeye Roast example: Strip Steak

9.  Increasingly popular  Advantages  Less labor  Uniformity and consistency  More time for creative preparation and presentation  Used as needed to reduce product waste  Safer and more efficient handling and storage  Limitations  Can be ordered by weight or by thickness, not both, due to variations in carcass size Fabricating Oven-Ready, Portion-Control Cuts

10.  1998 – New research uncovered several tender and flavorful muscles in the underutilized Chuck and Round  Traditionally used for roast and ground beef - these muscles could be extracted and turned into new steak cuts  Led to development of 13 new beef cuts, also known as beef value-added cuts  Gives consumers more options for favorite cooking methods, while helping meat processors, manufacturers, retailers, foodservice operators improve overall profitability  Easy to prepare and often moderately priced Muscle Profiling Study = New Steak Cuts

12.  At home, consumers are buying more case-ready beef, thanks to advancements in packaging  Case-ready beef accounted for 51% of all beef packages sold at retail in 2010, up from 31% in 2007 Beef Packaging

13.  Institutional Meat Purchase Specifications (IMPS)  North American Meat Processors Association (NAMP)  Both designed to facilitate buyer-supplier communications in meat product transactions  Meat Buyer’s Guide  Produced by NAMP with industry groups  Depicts each IMPS item with color photograph and written description  Ensures “apple-to-apple” comparison Ordering Beef

14.  Processing and selecting beef is a big and complex business  Meat must by inspected and passed for wholesomeness by the USDA, but quality grading is voluntary  Meat can be purchased as:  Primal  Subprimal  Oven-Ready and Portion-Controlled  Muscle profiling research led to introduction of newer steak cuts  Ordering beef streamlined with Meat Buyer’s Guide Summary

15. Product Information General: QUIZ 1.Which of the following is not a major tissue? (See slide 3) A.Muscle B.Myogloben C.Fat D.Connective Tissue 2.The USDA meat grading program indicates which of the following about graded meat? A.Palatability characteristics, like tenderness, juiciness and flavor B.Meat protein content C.Levels of pathogenic bacteria D.The meat’s origin

16. 3.True or false: Quality grading is voluntary. 3.Which of the following USDA grades is the best choice for leanness and minimal marbling? A.Select B.Choice C.Grass-fed D.Prime 4.True or false: Portion control cuts can be ordered by weight and thickness Product Information General: QUIZ

17. Product Information General: QUIZ KEY 1.B. Myogloben (See slide 3) 2.A. Palatability characteristics, like tenderness, juiciness and flavor (See slide 4) 3.True (See slide 4) 4.A. Select (See slide 5) 5.False (See slide 9)

18. Resources  Beef cut finder http://www.BeefRetail.org/ImagesRecipes.aspx http://www.beeffoodservice.com/cutsearch.aspx  Recipes and images http://www.BeefRetail.org/ImagesRecipes.aspx www.BeefItsWhatsForDinner.com/Recipes.aspx http://www.BeefFoodservice.com/recipesearch.aspx  Beef cut charts http://beefretail.org/beefcutcharts.aspx Beef Culinary Innovation Center http://www.culinaryinnovationcenter.com/ Beef Product & Market Research www.BeefResearch.org

19. Resources NAMP Meat Buyer’s Guide www.MeatBuyersGuide.com Beef Innovations Group – New Cuts http://www.beefinnovationsgroup.com/newcutstechnical.as px http://www.beefinnovationsgroup.com/cutsanimationandre sources.aspx