New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research abstracts
A comparison of animal performance and carcass and meat quality characteristics
in Hereford, Hereford x Friesian, and Friesian steers grazed together at
pasture
P. D. MUIR
G. J. WALLACE
AgResearch
Poukawa Research Station
P.O. Box 8144
Havelock North, New Zealand
P. M. DOBBIE
AgResearch
Ruakura Research Centre
Private Bag 3123
Hamilton, New Zealand
M. D. BOWN
Ness Road, RD2
Kerikeri, New Zealand
Abstract An experiment was carried out to compare the quality
of beef produced from Hereford (H), Hereford x Friesian (HF), and Friesian (F)
steers grazed together on pasture from weaning. Carcass characteristics, meat
quality parameters, and consumer acceptability were compared when the breeds
were slaughtered at the same age (H, HF1, F1) and at the same level of
"fatness" (i.e., same biological maturity; H, HF2, F2). H steers reached
slaughter weight and fatness at 27 months of age (approx. 610 kg, 6.75 mm
fat at 12th rib, respectively) at which time all H, half the Hereford x
Friesians (HF1), and half the Friesians (F1) were slaughtered. The remaining
steers (HF2 and F2) continued to graze until they reached a similar level of
fatness to H steers and were slaughtered at 29 and 35 months of age,
respectively. Growth rates were similar between breeds throughout the trial.
When slaughtered at the same age, H steers had higher carcass weights, higher
dressing-out percentages, whiter fat, and were significantly fatter than HF1 or
F1 steers. However, meat colour, total weight of significant meat cuts, and
meat tenderness were similar in all breeds. When slaughtered at the same
maturity, F2 carcasses were significantly heavier than HF2 or H steers and thus
had higher overall meat yields. However, differences in meat yield, as a
percentage of total carcass weight, were small. Meat from mature Friesians (F2)
took slightly longer to age than H steers although by 9 days after slaughter
breed differences in shear force tenderness measurements were not significant.
Differences in tenderness immediately post slaughter were associated with
higher calpastatin to u-calpain ratio in the meat from F2 steers. Although HF2
steers were 2 months older and F2 steers 8 months older than H steers at
slaughter, there was no effect on meat colour but fat colour was significantly
yellower in F2 steers. Differences in organoleptic parameters were small and no
consistent breed effects could be distinguished by taste panellists when
compared at the same age or the same maturity. It was concluded that when
managed similarly on pasture and slaughtered at the same age, differences in
beef quality between Hereford, Hereford x Friesian, and Friesian steers are
small and, where they exist, are largely due to differences in carcass fatness.
Keywords Hereford x Friesian; Hereford; Friesian; steers;
meat quality; tenderness; meat colour; fat colour; marbling
New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research 2000, Vol. 43: 193-205
0028-8233/00/4302-0193 $7.00/0 (c) The Royal Society of New Zealand
2000
PDF file of entire paper: medium quality (1024K); (scanned from paper original: notes about this process)
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