If you don’t have it, perhaps you’re more likely to make excuses.

At least that’s my gut feeling when I hear people trying to downplay the importance of marbling in beef. So every time this myth pops up, I wonder, “Why aren’t they just trying to improve the quality of their herd?” Instead they argue whether it’s even important.

Obviously they haven’t eaten as many steaks as I have, or they wouldn’t need research to prove this one false:

Myth—Marbling scores aren’t highly correlated with tenderness or eating experience. 

Fact–Beef Checkoff-funded research out of Colorado State University says it all. I recently interviewed veteran meat scientist Daryl Tatum on work he and his team just completed.

They used a trained panel to evaluate steaks from carcasses that were camera graded into seven different marbling scores, ranging from USDA Standard to Prime. Rather than assign positive or negative ratings, panelists were asked to quantify the presence of specific flavors such as “meaty, brothy” or other descriptors. They also gave ratings on tenderness, juiciness and the overall sensory experience.

Here’s what Daryl had to tell me:

“The last study that everyone wants to cite, the actual research was done in the late ‘70s and published in the early 80s. That was a long time ago and so we felt like it was time to take a look at it again.

Marbling has kind of gotten a bum rap from a lot of people saying it really doesn’t predict much, but across the full range, it has predicative capabilities. When you can measure it precisely,it does a really good job.”

Continue reading “Got it or not–it matters!”

The number one reason that cattle don’t qualify for Certified Angus Beef ® is insufficient marbling. You’ve heard us say that before. You’ll hear us say it again.

Yes, we focus on marbling. A lot. It’s sort of our lifeblood.

But, that doesn’t mean we walk around with blinders on. We know there are dozens of considerations that cattlemen and women must weigh at every turn.

That’s why I take it personal when I hear this come up in conversation or on-line forums:

Myth–CAB advocates single-trait selection.

Fact–Not true. We want producers who aim for our brand to be profitable. We know that not only includes a focus on the end product, but also on things like reproduction and growth.

Want proof? Check out our published genetic recommendations. Continue reading “One-track minds?”

People are always pointing out whose personality a child inherited, which parent he or she takes after.

I’m a night owl like my dad, but almost every other personality trait is often credited to my mother’s linage. When I was younger the older generations would reference my “Buchan (mom’s maiden name) temper” and any time I channel my inner Betty Crocker or Martha Stewart my maternal grandma’s family gets the credit.

I hear people talking about the same relationships in their family all the time, so why is it so hard for some folks to believe that cattle disposition follows similar patterns?

Myth—Some cattle are just wild. There’s not much a rancher can do to change that.

Fact—You might get one bad one in a bunch, but, overall, crazy cattle can be addressed through both genetics and management. (Are you seeing a pattern in these posts? Seems almost everything—even prices—gets rosier when focusing on both in tandem.) Continue reading “Inheriting good things”

If you follow the Beef Daily blog, you may have come across a post last week that hit really close to home with our crew. In “The Best Ways to Market Your Cattle,” Amanda Radke even mentioned our program by name and gave us credit for driving up prices of black feeder cattle at the auction barn.

I don’t disagree that CAB probably played a huge role in that. After all, that live-animal specification is the first hurdle that cattle have to meet to be accepted into our program, but it usually surprises folks to learn that our goal isn’t to increase numbers or prices of black-hided cattle in the U.S.

Myth—CAB is just concerned with turning the nation’s cowherd black.