Blaine County Fair Carcass Show: Defining a Steer of Merit

After scrutiny by carcass contest judges, three Blaine County 4-H members-Cody Arnold, Ryley Hofeldt, and Madilyn Gruszie-have earned 2019 Montana Steer of Merit Honors. Earning such an honor takes into consideration many factors-several of which begin with genetics.

The Steer of Merit (SOM) program is a statewide beef carcass contest that is overseen by an SOM Committee consisting of Montana Stockgrowers Association (MSGA) members and Montana State University (MSU) Extension representatives. The purpose of the SOM program is to reward those who produce market animals who meet or exceed industry standards of carcass quality:

• Hot Carcass Weight: 600-800 pounds

• Fat Cover: 0.3-0.45 inches

• Rib-eye Area: 12.5-14 square inches

• Yield Grade: 2 or less

• Quality Grade: Select + to Choice

Striving to meet these industry targets, producers often use this information to make genetic changes in their herds so as to improve the marketability of their calves.

Standards for achieving Montana Steer of Merit status, however, differ slightly from industry standards. According to a MSU Extension Beef Cattle Specialist, Dr. Megan Van Emon, beef carcass grading takes into consideration not only industry standards but several additional items. To earn Montana Steer of Merit honors, the animal must meet the following eight criteria:

• Hot Carcass Weight: 650 – 950 pounds

• Dressing Percentage: 55 – 68%

• Back Fat: 0.25 – 0.60 inches

• Ribeye Area: 11.5 - 17.5 square inches

• Yield Grade: ≤ 2.99

• Dark Cutter: No

• Quality Grade: Choice- or better

• Cutability: ≥ 51%

After evaluation, carcasses are ranked by sorting the data in three steps: 1) Steer of Merit (Yes or No); 2) Price per hundred-weight (highest to lowest); 3) Cutability (highest to lowest).

Before this information can be utilized for economic or other purposes, producers must understand what these terms mean. The hot carcass weight (HCW) is the weight of the unchilled carcass in pounds after the head, hide and internal organs have been removed. The HCW is used to determine yield grade and also dressing percentage.

Dressing percentage is the percentage of the live animal that ends up as carcass. It is computed from the following formula: Dress % = (HCW ÷ live weight) x 100. For example, a steer that has a live weight of 1,250 pounds and after slaughter has a HCW of 792 pounds would yield a dressing percentage of 63.36 percent: (792 ÷ 1250) x 100 = 63.36%. The dressing percentage for beef cattle is normally 60-64 percent, but the SOM program uses a broader range of 55-68%.

HCW is a major factor in determining total revenue when animals are sold on a grid. Pricing on a grid is a method of pricing slaughter cattle that offers premiums and discounts for carcasses. Cattle that are leaner and have higher quality grades receive premiums. Price discounts usually occur for carcasses weighing less than 650 lbs. and more than 950 lbs. However, within the acceptable range for HCW, heavier carcasses result in greater returns.

The third criteria, back fat refers to the external fat thickness (in inches) measured at the twelfth rib, three quarters of the length of the ribeye from the spine. This measure of external fat thickness on a carcass is perhaps the most important determinant of retail yield. As fat thickness increases, cutability and percentage of retail product decrease, resulting in less desirable yield grades. Excessively low amounts of external fat on a beef carcass are undesirable, as well, because this condition can increase the risk of cold shortening (chilling of the carcass too rapidly, leading to increased toughness). According to MSU Extension officials, the optimum range for fat thickness is 0.25 to 0.60 inches.

Ribeye area (REA) is the measure of the total area of the loin or ribeye between the 12th and 13th ribs. This measurement is expressed in square inches and can be measured using a grid. REA is also used in the determination of yield grade.

Yield grades are used to separate beef carcasses into cutability groups based on the expected yield of boneless, closely trimmed, retail cuts (BCTRC) from the round, loin, rib and chuck. Yield grades are expressed as numeric scores 1-5, with 1 having the greatest percentage of BCTRC and 5 the lowest. Factors used to calculate yield grades include fat cover (FC), HCW, REA, and percent kidney, pelvic, heart fat (%KPH). The formula used to determine USDA Yield Grade is 2.5 + (2.5 x FC) + (0.0038 + HCW) + (0.2 x %KPH) – (0.32 x REA). Cutability is calculated using an equation similar to yield grade that estimates BCTRC from a beef carcass: Cutability = 51.34 – (5.78 × BF) – (0.462 × KPH) – (0.0093 × HCW) + (0.74 × REA)

Next, the term dark cutter refers to beef that exhibits a dark, purplish red to almost black lean color compared to a normal cherry red. This coloring results from stress prior to slaughter and is a consequence of high muscle pH, a condition which will produce in lower quality beef.

Quality grading is based on maturity and marbling. In cattle that are fewer than thirty months old, the primary determinant of quality grade is the degree of marbling. Marbling, or intramuscular fat, is an estimate of the amount of fat present in the loin/ribeye muscle. Graders evaluate the amount of these fine threads of fat at the cut surface of the ribeye on the twelfth rib surface. Marbling is what gives beef its flavor, juiciness and tenderness. The nine marbling scores range from Practically Devoid (PD) to Abundant (AB). Prime USDA beef has the highest marbling score or fat content, followed by USDA Choice. The lowest grade, USDA Select has only slight marbling. As the meat cooks, this fat melts and essentially performs in two key ways: It keeps the meat tender and moist, and it infuses the meat with flavor. These features explain the cook's mantra that "marbled meat is marvelous meat."

Understanding the data provided on a carcass data report is vital to being able to utilize it to make improvements in a herd. Beef is the ultimate product in cattle production, and improving that product while meeting the demands of packers and consumers will likely ensure a higher profit for producers. According to the 2005 National Beef Quality Audit, producers often strive for two key goals:

• To deliver product attributes that meet consumer needs/expectations for safety, taste, color and convenience.

• To improve cattle by implementing instrument grading; controlling carcass weight; increasing marbling; decreasing variation, and maximizing profitability.

The major effort for carcass evaluations began in the mid-1980s when a discrepancy was observed: that animals winning at livestock shows did not match marketplace demands. Information from initial carcass assessments supported that assumption, especially for cattle where a number of carcasses were either dark cutters, had excessive carcass weights, exhibited low marbling scores, or had insufficient fat cover. Because of carcass evaluations like Montana's SOM program, today's carcass results are much more in-line with commercial production, although carcasses from these outstanding animals are often more muscular and leaner than the average beef.

Of the three Blaine County SOM winners, Arnold was the Grand Champion winner at the Blaine County Fair who also earned first place in the carcass results. He exhibited an Angus steer which was bred by Top Notch Angus with a finished weight of 1,405 pounds.

Top Notch Angus was established in 1991 by Marvin Cross. Upon his marriage to Patty Nissen in 2013, two herds were combined to create what is still known as Top Notch Angus.

Receiving second place SOM honors, Hofeldt earned a blue ribbon on her Angus Cross steer bred by Linda Ortner. Hofelt's steer finishing at 1,285 pounds. Taking third place, Gruszie's purple ribbon Red Angus was bred by Gordon Cattle Company and weighed in at 1,170 pounds.

MSU Extension and MSGA have been collaborating on the SOM program since the late 1960s. Each year, the SOM Committee meets in December during the MSGA annual convention to review the previous fair season's results and to make industry-reflective changes to SOM standards as they deem appropriate.

Exhibitors and breeders will be recognized at the MSGA annual convention, which will take place at the Double Tree and Northern Hotel in Billings on December 10-12, 2019.