UNIT 11: MEATS
Chapters 3, 7-9
Objectives
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Understanding of where meats come from
Knowledge of Grading meats
Appreciation for live animal meat evaluation
Knowledge of various cuts of meats
Understanding of animal by-products and their
places in the industry
Sources of Red Meats
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Beef-from cattle > 1 yr. of age
Veal-calves from 3 mos. or younger
Pork-swine
Mutton-mature sheep
Lamb-young sheep
Chevon-goats (goat meat)
Figure 9.4
Location of the wholesale cuts on the live steer, pig, and lamb. Source: Colorado State University.
World Supply
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~3.5b lbs.
Red meats accounts for over 85% of all production
U.S., China, Russia main suppliers
U.S. production of beef & pork >50b lbs.
Products


Use CO2 or stunning to render animal unconscious,
cut jugular before removing hide/scales
Drop separated from carcass
 Head
 Hide
 Hair
 Shanks
 Organs
Products

Dressing percentage
 Carcass
wt divided by live wt * 100
 Average dressing percentages
 Hogs
– 72%
 Cattle – 60%
 Sheep – 50%
 Factors
affecting dressing %
 Fill
 Fatness
 Muscling
 Wt
of hide
 Wt of wool
Products

Beef/Pork carcasses are split down the backbone
into halves
 Can
be stored in a cooler 28-32F
 Can be stored several weeks, most are only a day or
two
 Larger
companies move meat faster
 Small packers may allow meat to age and tenderize
Products

Shipping meats
 Used
to ship in carcass form
 Today, most packers process into wholesale/primal cuts
or even to retail cuts (boxed meats)
Figure 3.1
Annual commercial red meat production by type of meat. Source: Livestock Marketing Information Center.
Figure 3.2
Center.
Commercial cattle harvest in the United States, 2005 (1,000 head). The top 10 states are circled. Source: Livestock Marketing Information
Figure 3.3
Commercial hog slaughter 2005 (1,000 head). Source: Livestock Marketing Information Center.
Kosher & Muslim Meats


Specific rules for the slaughter of religiously
acceptable animals
Kosher meats
 Comes
from animals w/ split hooves, chew cud,
slaughtered according to Jewish Law
 Also prohibitions against mixing meat/milk
 Can only be slaughtered by specifically trained persons
 Must not eat blood, or parts containing blood…specific
arteries & veins must be removed
 $100 m in sales each yr in U.S.
Kosher & Muslim Meats

Any Muslim may slaughter an animal
 Can
also be slaughtered by others while approved
people present
Composition

Physical
 Lean,
fat, bone, connective tissue
 Proportions change over time

Chemical
 65-75%
water
 15-20% protein
 2-12% fat
 1% minerals
 What happens to these ratios as the animal gets older?
Figure 3.8
The fundamental structure of meat and muscle in the beef carcass.
Nutritional Considerations

Nutritive Value
 High
nutrient density foods
 High in vits, mins, iron, protein, essential amino acids
 Research focused on development of more, new cuts of
meat to increase consumption, health benefits, etc.
Consumption
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

Consumed for both satisfaction & nutritional content
Actual consumption data difficult to collect due to
variation in cuts, waste amounts, etc.
Changes in prices of meat products results in shifts in
demands back and forth from poultry and red
meats
Figure 3.10
Annual U.S. red meat and poultry consumption (boneless weight). Source: Livestock Marketing Information Center.
Figure 3.11 Daily per-capita meat consumption as part of meat, poultry, fish, dry beans, eggs, and nuts group (Food Guide Pyramid). Source:
National Live Stock and Meat Board.
Demand
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

Seems to be better barometer than per-capita
consumption
Price at which consumer will buy a specific
quantity…all other factors being equal
Drives not only meat purchases…but the livestock
population numbers on the farm
Figure 3.12
Annual retail meat and poultry prices (Nominal basis). Source: Livestock Marketing Information Center.
Figure 3.15
Annual per-capita U.S. expenditures for meat and poultry. Source: Livestock Marketing Information Center.
Marketing
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Terminal markets
 Large,

livestock collection centers
Sale Barns
 Located
all across the U.S.
 Purchased on live weight basis, buyer estimates value
of the carcass

Grade and Yield
 Some
animals purchased on carcass merit basis
 Cuts out the middle man to some extent, but also lower
the live weight market price
Marketing

Interesting facts:
½
of all food taken home to be prepared
 ½ of white collar workers eat 1 meal/d at their desk
 ¼ of calories consumed in form of snack foods
 10% of all food consumed in a vehicle
 Consumer confusion regarding what meat to purchase
and how to prepare it
 ¾ of consumers have no evening meal plan at end of
the day
Marketing
 Shifts
 Mid
in consumer preference changes producer goals
80’s demand for leaner meats
 Producers changed genetics, feeding, etc.
 Resulted in loss in sales due to loss of taste
 Only when producers matched leanness and marbling did
consumption begin to rise
Market Classes & Grades of Livestock
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
99$b of meat products are marketed annually
Market Classes and Grades
 Segregates
animals, carcasses, and products into
uniform groups based on buyer and seller preferences
 Established by USDA, but not mandatory
 Most
comply
 Meat inspection is mandatory
Market Classes and Grades
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Slaughter Cattle
 Veal
1-3 mos. <150 lbs.
 Calf 3-10 mos. 150-300 lbs.
 Beef >12 mos. Carcass wt. >300 lbs.
 Also separated by sex classes
 Heifer,
cow, steer, bull, bullock, stag
 Separates carcasses into more uniform wts.
Market Classes and Grades
 Quality
Grades
 Measures
consumer palatability characteristics.
 Maturity

Observed by bone/cartilage structures
 Marbling
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Intramuscular fat, or flecks of fat within the lean
Evaluated at the exposed rib-eye muscle between 12th and 13th
ribs
10 degrees are established from abundant to devoid
Figure 8.1
USDA quality grades (Commercial, Cutter, and canner omitted). Courtesy of USDA.
Figure 8.3
Relationship between marbling, maturity, and carcass quality grade. Source: USDA.
Figure 8.4 Exposed ribeye muscles (between the 12th and 13th ribs) showing various degrees of marbling associated with several beef carcass
quality grades. Courtesy of the American Meat Science Association copyrighted 1997.
Figure 8.5
Location of the fat measurement over the ribeye (longissimus dorsi) muscle. Source: Colorado State University.
Market Classes and Grades
 Yield
Grades (aka cutability grades)
 Measures
quality of boneless, closely trimmed retail cuts
from major wholesale cuts of beef (round, loin, rib, chuck)
Yield Grade
% BCTRC
1
> 52.3
2
52.3 - 50.0
3
50.0 - 47.7
4
47.7 - 45.4
5
< 45.4
Figure 8.2
USDA yield grades for market cattle. Courtesy of USDA.
Figure 8.7
The five yield grades of beef shown at the 12th and 13th ribs. Courtesy of American Meat Science Association copyrighted 1997.
Figure 8.8 Quality grades and yield grades of beef, 2004. Note: Approximately 10% of total carcasses are not quality or yield graded,
respectively. Quality and yield grade percentages do not equal 100% due to rounding error. Source: USDA.
Market Classes and Grades

Feeder Cattle
 Feeder
grades used to predict wt gain & slaughter wt
end point of cattle fed to a desirable fat-to-lean
composition
 Two criteria
 Frame
size
 Thickness
Figure 8.9
The three frame sizes of the USDA feeder cattle grade system. Source: USDA.
Figure 8.10
The four thickness standards of the USDA feeder cattle grade system. Source: USDA.
Carcass Composition Display
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Preferred proportion of fat:lean has changed over
the years
 How/Why?

Yield Grades determined from 4 carcass
characteristics:
 Amount
of fat in .1” over the rib-eye muscle
 Kidney, pelvic, heart fat
 Area of the rib-eye muscle in sq. in.
 Hot carcass wt.
Carcass Composition Display
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Quality and Yield grading is voluntary, however,
about 90% is quality graded, and 84% is yield
graded
Carcass Composition Display
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Slaughter Swine
 Sex
Classes
 Barrow,
gilt, sow, boar, stag
 What is the difference?
 Traditional
grades for Barrow/Gilt carcasses based on
two characteristics
 Quality
of the lean
 Expected combined yields of for lean cuts:
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Ham
Loin
Blade Shoulder
Picnic Shoulder
Carcass Composition Display
 Two
quality grades for lean in pork carcasses:
at the exposed surface of a cut muscle at the 10th
and 11th ribs
 Acceptable
 Observed
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Gray/pink in color
Fine muscle fibers
Fine marbling
Graded 1-4 depending on the amount of lean
 Unacceptable
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Too dark/pale
Soft
Watery
Bellies are too thin for bacon
Visual Perspective of Carcass
Composition of the Live Animal
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Goal: large amounts of highly palatable lean w/
minimal amounts of fat & bone
Sizes and shapes of cattle, swine, sheep are
different, but muscle structure and fat deposition
areas are almost identical
 Ex.
Animal w/ square appearance over top of back,
block and deep from the side has a large accumulation
of fat
Visual Perspective of Carcass
Composition of the Live Animal

Fat accumulation
 Brisket
 Dewlap
 Jowl
 Between
hind legs
 Edge of loin
 Behind the shoulders

Shoulder blade movement can be seen when lean
cattle/swine walk
Visual Perspective of Carcass
Composition of the Live Animal
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
Animals w/ oval shape to its back and thickness
through the center of hind legs have high proportion
of lean:fat
Fat on retail cuts has been reduced over the last 20
years
 1/4
to 1/8 in, or none on many cuts
 Reduction taken primarily by packer
 Some breeding and feeding practices altered
 This
is not highly encouraged
 Why?
By-Products of Meat Animals
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Can account for as much as 8-10% of the total
value of a fed steer
What are the by-products?
Two categories based on human consumption
 Edible
& Inedible
Edible By-Products
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Also called variety meats
Organs and body parts other than the carcass
What are some examples?

Liver, heart, tongue, tripe, sweetbread
Tripe-lining of the stomach
 Sweetbread-thymus gland

Avg. 1100# steer produces ~36# of variety meats
 Per capita consumption of variety meats is only ~9#
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Much is exported
Lard and Tallow
Shortenings, margarines, pastries, candies
 Inedible tallow goes into soap, lubricants, feed, fatty acids
 ~45% of inedible tallow, and ~20% of edible tallow are
exported

Inedible By-Products
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Tallow, hides, inedible organs
 Some

skins are edible
Many pharmaceuticals originate from these byproducts
 Cholesterol
 Corticosteroids
 Epinephrine
 Heparin
 Rennet
 Cortisone
Inedible By-Products
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Hides
Cattle & buffalo hides account for ~80% of hides in the
world
 $1.3 b exported from U.S. each year
 Some goat and sheep skins ~$33m/yr.
 One cowhide-144 baseballs, 20 footballs, 18 volleyballs,
12 baseball gloves, 12 basketballs
 Leather use in the U.S.-40% upholstery, 50% shoes, 10%
other
 Hide weighs>30lbs., skins<30lbs.
 Skins w/ wool left on called pelts

Inedible By-Products
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Value of hides can be reduced, how?
Hides worth ~$1/lb.
Fed steers produce ~65-75lbs. Of hide
After hides are treated (“blue” stage) they lose about 15
lbs.
 Preserves for shipping
 Value is increased to $80-90
 60lb. Hide produces ~40 sq. ft. of leather
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Tanners add ~$500m annually to hides
Hides are the most valuable by-product
7m tons of by-product ($8b) used to make pet food

Ex.
Inedible By-Products
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
Pet food exports tripled since 1990
 Dog food sales ~$9m, extra $1b spent in treats
Rendered fats and oils are also used in the
manufacture of biodiesel
 Currently used in some public transportation
systems
Figure 7.1
Edible and inedible by-products from a 1,100-lb steer. Source: USDA.
Figure 7.2
In addition to the retail product of beef are numerous by-products. Adapted from Field (1996).
Figure 7.3 Rib brands are a primary cause of lost value in hides. While many states require branding as verification of ownership, branding on the
upper or lower hip is preferred to minimize hide damage.
The Rendering Industry
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What are their sources for product?
70m lbs. of animal material daily
Rendering of Red Meat Animal By-Products
 Animal
fat and animal protein are the major products
 Most fats go into animal feeds
The Rendering Industry
 Fatty
acids
 Plastics
 Cosmetics
 Lubricants
 Paints
 Deodorants
 Cleaners
 Caulk
 Ink
 Etc.
The Rendering Industry
 Proteins
 Processed
into >50% protein sources
 Meat and Bone meal
 Blood meal

Disposing of Dead Livestock
 Do
not enter the food chain
 Must be careful to avoid cross contamination to humans
or other livestock
The Rendering Industry
Protocol for disposal of dead stock

Removal by licensed rendering company
2. Compost the carcass
3. Burn in an approved incinerator (licensed)
4. Bury >4’ deep
1.