While you guys are out there looking for the second gunman on the grassy knoll, trying to find Jimmy Hoffa, UFO's and proof that Bigfoot exists, I'll be out there enjoying my life. the graders don't know to the day the steers age but they do know within certain parameters the general range in age on the carcases they are grading. The problem is you need a magnifying glass to find them. A mark of inspection will not always appear on product sold at retail if it is further processed. It's a crying shame. FS is not a common meat industry abbreviation; however, it might mean Full Service, in that it was designated to be sold through the full service (cut & wrap) section of the retail butcher shop. Please see answers to your questions. In 1978, a group of Midwest ranchers formed the Certified Angus Beef brand, setting up an organization to give specific certification to some Angus producers. Certified Angus Beef (which is graded by the USDA) must be in the top two grades, and will either be listed as Prime or Choice. Choice grade Certified Angus Beef is generally of better quality than an average cut of choice beef. that is not a grade. After reading an ad for grass fed beef (after seeing someone on Shark Tank hawking his meat company) I decided to investigate what is fed and added to cattle. Now you know. on: function(evt, cb) { There really are no specific recipes using Angus beef (unless you are on the Certified Angus Beef website), so any recipe for beef will apply. q How long will you stand for this atrocity America? scale: Prime, Choice, Select and several low-quality grades. Because of this, and the general popularity of Angus by ranchers, it has become the most popular breed in the United States. If you purchase ground Angus beef, you need to cook it until there is no longer any pink showing (unless you use it to make burgers—then simply cook to your liking); if you are making a roast or grilling a steak, you should cook it until it reaches your preferred doneness. I have seen rolls of USDA Prime stickers available online - I could buy them. brand Prime. In addition to the grade or grade shield, the product will also bear the USDA inspected and passed round shaped logo with the processing plant number inside. It would be more accurate to state that USDA Prime comes from IMMATURE cattle. Prime beef is produced from young, well-fed beef cattle. And although Grant died a few years after arriving in the United States, his legacy left a lasting impression. } A: The same independent USDA graders inspect black-hided cattle It's just like why people like McDonald's...because their conditioned to it. It says USDA and is not graded or give the origin (country). Anyone too stupid to take the word of the experts from the literal point of conception to table needs to go to their local auction. 2A. h�b```a``���� $ƀ X8Px��� ����hd�� af=�H3�@� ��� endstream endobj 5 0 obj <> endobj 6 0 obj <>>>/Rotate 0/Type/Page>> endobj 7 0 obj <>stream Sorry, but your big Ag and big Pharma tales just do not occur. Angus beef is then evaluated again, using the brand's set of 10 science-based specifications for marbling, size and uniformity. @Rhys, thanks for your question about grade labels. While the CAB brand has stringent quality standards that favor high-percentage Angus cattle, there’s a wide spectrum of quality under Angus brands, from CAB Prime down to other Angus that is No Roll and Commercial. Good quality Angus beef will be labeled with the logo "Certified Angus Beef," a brand created by the American Angus Association. Dennis Keohane is the Editorial Director for ButcherBox. I recently bought NY strips steaks at a local Washington, DC grocery chain that labels certain meats "Butcher Shop -USDA graded" but the actual grade of beef never is specified anywhere on the package. But BigAg wants to feed the world the same diet that is killing Americans with Heart Disease and Diabetes, and etc. The meat was so damn tough, they were all but inedible. You can complain all you like about consumer preference (and you may be right about it), but there is no evil plot on the part of the USDA or "Big Ag". The higher the amount No matter the breed, type, or quality of the beef, it needs to be stored properly to maintain freshness and optimal flavor and texture. By Mark McCully, Certified Angus Beef LLC vice president, supply, “Cattle have to be 51% black.” “Is it the hair or the hide or both?” “It’s the average of a pen, so if more than half of them are black, the whole pen qualifies.” “What if a few are Holstein – just add up the spots and see if you get to more than 51%? USDA's stringent Prime standards, AND meets all 10 of the brand's quality specifications. 0000000436 00000 n Linda from Kansas is correct. The following statement from the above article is FALSE: "Prime beef is produced from young, well-fed beef cattle". I can't find it in stores or the few remaining butchers available to the public. How do you know what grade of meat you're buying (in Arizona) if it's not marked on the package? What is it? If the retailer further processes (e.g., grinds or trims) and repackages the product, the repackaged product would no longer bear the USDA mark of inspection. Most producers know the original is the Certified Angus Beef (CAB) brand, which has worked collaboratively with USDA since the late 1970s. Stop being such babies. Mmmmmmm! Is that correct and if so why did that change? They were vacuum packed, 1 in. People don't like the flavor and quality of grass-fed beef. thanks. If you plan to keep it longer, wrap well in an airtight package and place in the freezer where it can be stored for several months. It asserts in much of its marketing advice that the “Angus breed is superior in marbling to all other mainstream beef breeds.”. Some high value case ready packaged cuts such as the tenderloin (filet) from older ungraded animals are used to meet certain consumer preferred price points. No, We’ve probably heard them all—stories about what it takes to qualify for an Angus brand. A 1200 pound, Yield Grade 3 steer yields 435 pounds of retail cuts from a 750 pound carcass. Their web site sez, "A blend of USDA Quality Grades, with a marbling score of Traces 50 – Slight 99" What grade is this meat equivalent to? If you saw a package of "FS" ribeye steaks....what would that mean to you? Up to 30% of all corn produced is fed to these animals. There are Black and Red Angus, but the Red Angus is not recognized by the American Angus Association and is a much rarer breed. Posted by Larry Meadows, Director, AMS Livestock, Poultry and Seed Program Grading and Verification Division in. USDA inspectors do not know, nor do they attempt to determine the age of the carcasses they are inspecting. If Ronald McDonald and the King are slinging a product, that should be an indicator that a product is not quite what you might expect. Being asked to certify other Angus brands, USDA used GL1 for the template to create Government Live Angus (GLA) as the phenotypic standard for all Angus certified programs. @C.R. From a consumer standpoint, what do these quality beef grades mean? If a product is not marked with a USDA grade, then the product has not been graded or is being advertised and sold without a grade. The grading begins on the ranch when the steers are separated prior to going to market (auction). Did you know only 8% of beef is good enough to get the Prime Reserve label. Many of the less tender cuts can also be cooked with dry heat if not overcooked. window.mc4wp.listeners.push( However, that was always applied post-harvest, per animal, as hides were removed. Quality grades are widely used as a "language" within the beef industry, making business transactions easier and providing a vital link to support rural America. All beef is inspected for wholesomeness by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)*, Other cuts should be marinated before cooking or braised to obtain maximum tenderness and flavor. Lines and paragraphs break automatically. The fanciful idea that adding up the spots may allow Holsteins to qualify resurfaced after last winter’s market setback. educational video about the beef grading process, http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/getfile?dDocName=STELPRDC5081872", http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/getfile?dDocName=STELPRDC5081872