The latest eating quality science
managing intramuscular fat and tenderness to
improve the consumer eating experience
Dave Pethick
Lis Pannier & the Sheep CRC Meat Science Team
Topics
1. Meat Standards Australia – history/current
2. New traits
• Shear force tenderness
• Intramuscular fat
• MSA consumer taste panel
3. Predicting consumer taste panel response
4. MSA lamb Mark II – what it might look like ?
Where have we come from ?
Lamb loin tenderness in the 90’s
1997/98 retail audit – Safari et al. (2002) n = 907
MSA - underpinned by consumer testing
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Tenderness (0 – 100)
Juiciness
Liking of flavour
Overall liking
Unsatisfactory Good every day Better than
every day Premium
Science is recognised world wide
Real people – real answers !
Conception Pre-slaughter
Post-slaughter
control
control
Genetics
Sheep age
Critical
Control Points
Hang
Growth path (feed type & finishing)
Chillers
Ageing of meat
Intramuscular fat
Cut/ primal
Selling method
Value adding
Pre-slaughter stress
Cooking method
Consumer
Tenderness
Juiciness Flavour Overall Liking
Meat Standards Australia
lamb
MSA lamb - current
• Consumer focused model to underpin the
eating quality of lamb
• It is a simple ‘in/out’ system with ‘rules’ for
– Producers
– Processors
– Retailers
Requirements eg
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Fat score - GR ≥ 6mm (≥score 2)
No eruption of permanent incisor teeth
pH x temperature requirements (e-stimulation)
Aging of meat for 5 days
………
Change is possible
MSA data (2005) n = 806, optimal processing, fat & pH compliant
What’s missing ?
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Continuous improvement
Genetic effects
Carcase grading
Cuts grading
The Information Nucleus
(500 sires, 10,000 slaughter lambs)
DORPER
New traits (i) intramuscular fat
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Juiciness, flavour, tenderness
4.2 ± 0.04% (Xbred mean)
Ideal 4-6%
Mod/high heritability
Called marbling in beef
New traits (ii) shear force tenderness
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Mechanical measure of Tenderness (kg or Newtons)
Higher value = tougher
Measured after electrical stimulation and 5 days aging
Gene markers for this trait in sheep (& beef)
Intramuscular fat reduces it
Mod/high heritability
Important correlations – genetic
(2 years data 183 sires, 4,110 progeny)
• LMY vs IMF
-ve mod/high
BAD
• LMY vs SF5
+ve mod
BAD
• IMF vs SF5
-ve high
GOOD
LMY = lean meat yield
SF5 = Shear force tenderness day 5
IMF = intramuscular fat
So single focused selection on LMY will:
• Increase shear force (tougher)
• Reduce intramuscular fat (less juicy, less flavour &
tougher)
• BUT LMY is totally important for lamb
So how can we protect eating quality ?
Evolve an MSA Mark II
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Evolve an enhanced MSA lamb model
Incorporating new Sheep CRC information
Manage yield and eating quality
Cuts grading
Eating quality
• But what does shear force and IMF mean to
consumers ?
• Will they pay more ?
• ……
MSA Lamb mark II
Grade cuts into:
2* - Unsatisfactory
3* - Good every day
4* - Better than every day
5* - Premium
Willingness to pay data
(Price relative to 3*, n = number consumers)
Mean
n
Ungrade
3*
4*
5*
1,858
49%
100%
147%
200%
Australian consumers - lamb
3 star
4 star
5 star
Sire variation – consumer tenderness
Topside
tenderness
(Pannier et al. unpublished)
Loin tenderness
97 sires, 745 lambs, 2 cuts per lamb, grilled
Sire variation – consumer tenderness
16 points
Topside
tenderness
12 points
Loin tenderness
Likely sufficient to change rating
2* unsatisfactory
3* good every day
4* better than every day
5* premium
Sire variation – consumer tenderness
4*
Topside
tenderness
3*
Loin tenderness
5*
Sire variation – consumer tenderness
Topside
tenderness
3*
2*
Loin tenderness
Remember - this is with ‘optimal’
processing
• All carcases had e-stimulation
• Product aged for 5 days
What did consumers say about the
2 cuts ?
Distribution of grades (745 lambs per cut)
2* 3* 4* 5*
Short lion 7 34 35 24 %
Topside 29 48 17
5 %
Can we predict this grade ?
IMF vs MSA consumer score
IMF nails juicy and flavour
6
9
9
11
Shear force vs MSA consumer score
Shear force nails tenderness
11
7
6
6
Other correlates
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Carcase fatness
Carcase muscling
Lean meat yield
Carcase wt
Colour
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MSA Mark II
• Currently too hard to measure shear force or
intramuscular fat in the abattoir
• Currently cannot grade a lamb carcase commercially
• So EQ claims will be underpinned by:
– in part the sires used
– ideally carcase measures
Consumer score breeding value
• Use std genetic techniques to develop a consumer score
breeding value for sires:
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Consumer score
Shear force tenderness
Intramuscular fat
Lean Meat Yield
Other correlates …………
• Support with genomic prediction
• Use the breeding value to underpin quality claims
MSA Mark II – 2nd phase
Grade individual carcases for LMY and meat quality
• Develop better LMY prediction ‘on line’
• Develop meat quality and IMF measurement ‘on line’
– GR fat-o-meter II probe with electrical impedance
– Wide wavelength vision system
– Rhaman spectroscopy
These are AMPC/MLA projects in progress
Conclusions
• Current MSA system is a simple no brainer
• Processors/retailers are seeing the benefits
• We still need producers to sign up – do it today !
• However it does not allow for continuous
improvement and lean meat yield interactions
Conclusions
• Meat science phenotypes - shear force tenderness
and intramuscular fat
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Heritable
We know the key production factors that effect them
Predictive of the consumer score
Interact with lean meat yield
• We will be able to develop a consumer score breeding
value
Conclusions
• MSA mark II underpinned by consumer score sire
breeding value
• Cuts based grading down star ratings
• Will allow us to select for Lean Meat Yield and Eating
quality together
Conclusions
• Processors to their credit are investing in R&D for
better carcase measurement systems
• Are we heading for carcase grading at last ?
– Lean meat yield
– Eating quality
Aussie lamb - premier meat on the Planet!
Questions…
Quick reality check
Getting 4* cuts in moderate carcase wt Sth beef
• Optimal processing ✔
• No hormones ✔
• Get’em young (< about 140 oss = 18-24 months) ✔
• Have just enough marble = solid score 1 (4-6% IMF) ✔
IMF breeding value
Other correlates e.g LMY vs IMF
LMY breeding value