Steak Location Within the Semitendinosus Muscle Impacts Metmyoglobin Accumulation on Steaks During Retail Display

Beef color is a major attribute consumers utilize to make purchasing decisions. It is estimated poor color shelf-life of beef steaks costs the meat industry more than $1 billion annually. Shelf-life color is influenced by a balance of two biochemical processes within steaks: metmyoglobin reducing ability and oxygen consumption. Steaks that exhibit a greater metmyoglobin reducing and a reduced oxygen consumption are typically characterized as more color stable. Characteristics of the muscle fiber or muscle cell are what determine the properties of a steak. Commonly, muscles with more oxidative fibers have an elevated oxygen consumption and reduced metmyoglobin reducing ability. The Semitendinosus muscle or eye of round possesses a divergent muscle fiber isoform distribution based on the location steaks are fabricated. The objective of this study was to examine effects of steak location on muscle fiber type distribution and metmyoglobin accumulation of Semitendinosus steaks

Freezing Improves Instrumental Tenderness of Strip Steaks Purchased at Retail Grocery Stores

When meat is frozen cell membranes can be damaged, which may lead to lower water holding capacity and higher cooking losses. Several researchers have indicated that freezing Longissimus muscle (strip loin) steaks may lower Warner-Bratzler shear force, a measurement to objectively measure beef tenderness, compared with steaks not previously frozen. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of freezing on beef tenderness and cooking characteristics of strip steaks purchased from grocery store outlets

Premium Choice Steaks Purchased from Grocery Outlets Are Generally More Tender Throughout the Year than Lower Quality Grade Steaks

Consumers typically have the opportunity to select steaks from a variety of marketing categories that relate to quality, price, and expected tenderness. Research on quantifying characteristics of strip steaks from different marketing programs available in self-serve retail display cases and establishing benchmark data for strip steak comparisons for future years is needed. The purpose of this study was to determine mechanical tenderness as well as physical and cooking characteristics of strip steaks purchased from self-serve display cases in grocery store outlets throughout the year

Coarse Marbled Beef is Juicier and More Flavorful Than Fine or Medium Marbled Beef

Beef palatability and eating experience is driven primarily by U.S. Department of Agriculture quality grade and marbling levels. Beef USDA quality grade consists of both marbling levels and maturity. Conventionally, marbling texture has not been a consideration of quality grades. Currently, only one study has assessed the effects of marbling texture on beef palatability. Despite this, preferences for fine or medium marbling exist with both packers and retailers, as approximately 75% of branded beef programs under the supervision of USDA-AMS require fine or medium textured marbling, which equates to losses of premiums for packers and producers (USDA, 2016). The objective of the study was to evaluate the effects of marbling texture on trained sensory panel ratings of beef strip loin steaks of varying USDA quality grades and marbling textures

Marbling Texture Does Not Affect Consumer Preference of Beef Strip Loin Steaks

In the beef industry, U.S. Department of Agriculture quality grades and marbling levels have long been associated with beef palatability and eating experience. Marbling score and maturity are the two major components of USDA quality grade. Traditionally, marbling texture has not been considered a factor of marbling score; however, there are often discernments at both the packer and retail level, as more than 75% of branded beef programs supervised by USDA-AMS have a specification of fine or medium textured marbling (USDA, 2015). Additionally, in some cases, fine and medium textured steaks are graded higher than their coarse counterparts, which results in a loss of possible premiums for producers and packers. There is very little research evaluating marbling texture and its effect on palatability and eating experience

Photogrammetric Analysis of the 2013 El Reno Tornado Combined with Mobile X-Band Polarimetric Radar Data

Abstract This study presents rapid-scanning X-band polarimetric radar data combined with photogrammetry of the El Reno tornado of 31 May 2013. The relationship between the hook echo, weak-echo hole (WEH), weak-echo column (WEC), and the rotational couplet with the visual characteristics of the tornado are shown. For the first time, cross-correlation coefficient (ρhv) and differential reflectivity (ZDR) data are included in the photogrammetric analyses. The tornado was accompanied by a large tornadic debris signature (TDS) with a diameter ~2 km wide during the analysis time. The center of the TDS was not collocated with the WEH and the rotational couplet. Instead, the TDS was displaced ~1 km to the north and within the weak-echo notch of the hook echo. A “debris overhang” was identified in vertical cross sections of the ρhv fields. The overhang was located in a weak-echo trench and a notch of high ρhv, consistent with the position of the tornado updraft. The updraft was hypothesized to be carrying small debris particles to heights that produced the overhang signature. A U-shaped band of high ρhv and ZDR was resolved in a vertical cross section and positioned at the periphery of the WEC during one of the analysis times. It was proposed that the band formed as a result of hydrometeors encircling the WEC while being surrounded on all sides by relatively hydrometeor-free air. The characteristics of the scatterers within the WEC were resolved and believed to be composed of a low concentration of very small, randomly oriented, debris particles, even in the presence of strong centrifuging, and a general absence of hydrometeors

Length of Aging has Greater Effect than Lactic Acid Treatment on Color Stability of Beef Chuck Muscles

Lactic acid spray washes are widely used as an antimicrobial intervention in the beef industry. Sprays are typically applied to the exterior of carcasses and subprimal cuts to reduce or eliminate potential pathogenic bacteria. While the efficacy of these washes has been proven, other questions remain about their effect on color attributes of meat when applied to subprimal cuts. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of a lactic acid subprimal wash on the color stability of beef chuck rolls

How do Alternative Pressures Affect the Accuracy of the Pressed Juice Percentage (PJP) at Predicting Consumer Juiciness Rating?

Texture is the most important sensory trait when evaluating meat products (Gomes et al., 2014). In beef products, tenderness and juiciness interact to form overall texture and mouthfeel. As a result, beef juiciness is one of the most important factors in creating a satisfactory beef eating experience. A recent study by Woolley (2014) developed an instrumental technique for measuring beef juiciness and predicting consumer beef juiciness satisfaction. The method utilizes a texture analyzer to compress cooked beef samples for a period of 8 seconds at 17.6 lb of force and quantifies the percentage of moisture lost as Pressed Juice Percentage (PJP), a predictor of beef juiciness. Results from the initial study found PJP accounts for 20% of the variation in consumer juiciness scores; however, an evaluation of additional pressures is needed to determine if the PJP method can account for an even greater percentage of variation. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate the PJP method utilizing three different pressures and determine the relationship of these values to consumer sensory scores for juiciness

Sensory Evaluation from Asian Consumers of Six Different Beef Shank Cuts

Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate factors affecting Asian consumers’ purchasing decisions and eating preferences of six different beef shank cuts. Study Description: Six different beef shank cuts, three from the forequarter [biceps brachii (shank A); a combination of deep digital flexor and flexor digitorum superficialis (shank B); extensor carpi radialis (shank C)], and three from the hindquarter [flexor digitorum superficialis (shank D); deep digital flexor (shank E); and a combination of long digital extensor, medial digital extensor and peroneus tertius (shank F)] were collected from 12 U.S. Department of Agriculture Low Choice beef carcasses. Shanks from the left side of the carcasses were used for consumer taste panels, and consumers visually evaluated size and surface color of samples from the right side of the carcasses. The Bottom Line: There were differences among consumer preferences for different shank cuts. Consumers preferred shanks A, D, and F in the sensory taste panel, while shanks A and C were the most preferable in visual evaluation. Shanks A, D, and F should be priced with a premium, while shank C should be discounted in domestic Asian and international markets