Bigger beef carcasses are bigger challenge today

Originally published in the November 13, 2009, print edition.

By Dick Hagen The Land Staff Writer

The Land — “We’ve seen a gradual increase in the size of our beef animals and as a result we’re also dealing with larger carcasses,” said Ron Eustice, Minnesota Beef Council executive director.

Modern genetics are partially responsible because today’s sire selection and breeding programs tend to put the bonus on larger carcasses.

This bigger critter trend is creating its own conundrum. Today’s diet-conscious consumer is backing away from those deliciously attractive 16-ounce T-bone steaks and instead is now directing his/her red meat purchases toward smaller cuts, even down to the 4-ounce and 6-ounce size.

Minnesota Beef Council to the rescue.

Working with the Agricultural Utilization Research Institute, Eustice is planning a series of training programs for meat cutters of major retail food stores on the cutting, slicing and packaging of new cuts of beef to present a smaller product for the consumer.

“We’re talking the New York strip and the entire loin area redesigned so that we end up with smaller steaks because that simply is what today’s consumer is buying,” Eustice said, pointing out that this has become an ongoing project through the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association.

He said that the Flat Iron steak, a “new” cut from the shoulder chuck area introduced just two years ago, rapidly became a top seller basically because it’s delicious, and it’s a 4- to 5-ounce steak.

“And that’s just the right size for most people. I’ve long felt we were losing some of our market share at the meat counter because half of our customers are female and the typical woman is not buying 10- to 12-ounce steaks.”

The reality is that moving to smaller steaks is a win-win situation for everyone. Most importantly it gives today’s consumer what they are looking for. But also that same loin cut into 4- to 6-ounce products in essence is putting twice as many steaks into the meat counter. So the retailer wins simply because he now has considerably more selling items. And the consumer wins because they have their choice at a more affordable price.

Eustice said training programs have already been conducted at AURI’s Marshall facility with SuperValu and Mason Brothers. “The demand for these special training programs on how to more efficiently handle beef carcasses keeps increasing because we know, and retailers especially know, that we have a changing consumer.”

The second phase of this muscle profiling study has produced a new cut called the Denver Cut, also a 3- to 6-ounce product. This work is yielding other new cuts, some already introduced at restaurants and a few retail counters.

“Previously the entire chuck was either processed into ground beef and sold as hamburger at a very discounted price, or made into a pot roast. Now we’re coming up with several new alternatives, all smaller in size, and definitely offering the consumer more variety than ever before,” Eustice said.

With exports a big portion of the U.S. beef industry market, what’s a foreign buyer’s take on these new, smaller cuts of meat? Eustice said they are even more particular about their meats with specific needs and wants. The Japanese market in particular has been lucrative for these new consumer-friendly U.S. beef products, especially the high value cuts from the loin and the ribs.

Recognizing the tradition of the quality of U.S. beef, Eustice said it is still the premier red meat product in the world primarily because U.S. beef is mostly corn-fed beef, which inherently produces some flavor and tenderness qualities.

A colorful guide, “Choose Your Calories by the Company They Keep,” pretty much summarized the growing popularity of lean beef in the diet. Consider that a 3-ounce serving of lean beef (179 calories) contains about the same amount of protein as 1 1/2 cups of legumes, but has only half the calories. Unlike plant proteins, lean beef is a high-quality protein and is the food supply’s most easily absorbed source of iron and zinc.

Check MyPyramid.gov for a convenient look at how to keep good nutrition simple by selecting foods rich in essential nutrients from the five food groups. If you’d like to get your hands on more than 130 lean beef recipes for every occasion, consider “The Healthy Beef Cookbook,” a combined project of the American Dietetic Association and the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association. To order, log on to www.BeefItsWhatsForDinner.com.