Arkansas - Agricultural Communication Services - University of ...

Consumer Acceptability of Forage Fed Beef
J. T. Lockhart, 2 K. J. Simon, 2 L. B. Daniels, 1 F. Pohlman, 1 and Z. B. Johnson 2
Story in Brief
Boneless strip loins from Angus steers (n = 32) which grazed soft red winter wheat forage and supplemented with
2 lb of corn per head per day were compared against typical grain-finished beef to ascertain consumer preferences.
Steers were harvested after grazing wheat forage for 161 d, and beef quality data was collected by trained, experienced
University personnel. Two forage-finished carcasses had small degrees of marbling and the remainder of the carcasses
had slight degree of marbling. Strip loins were removed from the right side of each carcass, vacuum packaged and
allowed to age at 34°F for 7 d, then frozen until consumer evaluation. Before consumer testing, 1 inch steaks of strip
loins with small and slight degrees of marbling from conventional grain finished cattle were purchased. Steaks were
cooked to an internal temperature of 160°F. Samples were served warm to 62 consumers, who evaluated samples for
flavor, juiciness, tenderness and overall acceptability. No differences (P < 0.10) were observed for flavor due to consumer
gender when the consumer was over 30 years of age, but a gender by treatment interaction occurred (P < 0.01)
when consumers were under 30 years of age. Females under 30 accepted the flavor of forage fed beef with a small
amount of marbling more than males under the age of 30. Males rated the forage fed beef juicier and more tender than
females. Males preferred grain fed beef with slight marbling when compared to females. However, no differences were
observed between males and females on the acceptability of grain fed with small marbling or forage fed beef with slight
marbling. Preliminary results suggest that consumers under 30 years of age, especially female consumers, find beef
from forage-finished cattle to be acceptable.
Introduction
Beef finished on forages have been considered to have
carcass characteristics and palatability attributes that are not
preferred by consumers. Smith (1990) reported a deleterious
effect on carcass and beef quality when cattle were finished
on forage. However, others (Crouse et al., 1984; Fortin et al.,
1985) found no differences in palatability attributes between
forage and grain finished beef.
When compared to grain-finished beef, forage-finished
beef has been reported to have intensity of a “milky-oily” flavor
(Melton, 1983) or “grassy” flavor (Larick et al., 1987).
This flavor decreases in intensity with time as steers are fed
grain for an increased number of days after being removed
from grass pasture.
Melton (1983) reported flavor difference may not be
the reason forage-finished beef is unsuccessful in the marketplace.
In a test market for forage-produced beef, she found
52% of a group of 87 consumers, after the first use of rangegrazed
beef, would definitely buy it again. Therefore, the
objective of this study was to evaluate consumer acceptability
of forage finished beef compared to grain finished beef.
Experimental Procedures
Strip loins were removed from steers used in a study
conducted by Daniels et al. (2000) including 32 Angus steers
which grazed soft red winter wheat and were fed 2 lb of corn
per day per head from November 17, 1999, until April 26,
2000. Eight randomly selected steers having an average body
weight of 1,081 lb were slaughtered and graded at the
University of Arkansas Meat Science Abattoir. Two of the
strip loins from forage finished beef had small degrees of
marbling (Choice) while the six remaining samples had a
slight degree of marbling (Select). The day before consumer
testing, 1 inch steak from strip loins with small and slight
degrees of marbling from conventional grain finished beef
were purchased.
Strip loin steaks were cooked in a Blodgett conventional
oven for approximately 25 min, until they reached an internal
temperature of 160°F. Samples were served warm to 62
consumers, who evaluated samples for flavor, juiciness, tenderness
and overall acceptability. All characteristics were
scored on a scale from 1 to 8, with 1 = extreme milky oily and
8 = extreme beef fat for flavor; 1 = extremely dry and 8 =
extremely juicy for juiciness; 1 = extremely tough and 8 =
extremely tender for tenderness; and 1 = extremely undesirable
and 8 = extremely desirable for overall acceptability. The
consumers were comprised of 25 males under the age of 30,
12 males over the age of 30, 13 females under the age of 30,
and 12 females over the age of 30.
Data were analyzed as a split plot using PROC MIXED
of SAS (SAS Inst. Inc., Cary, NC) looking at effects of treatment,
gender, age category and all interactions. When the
three-way interaction of treatment by gender by age category
was significant, data were analyzed separately by age
category.
1 Department of Animal Science, Fayetteville.
2 M.S. Candidates–Department of Agricultural and Extension Education, Fayetteville.
172