What does ‘Quality’
mean to you?
Quality can mean lots of things. In regards to meat, some
people may equate it with freshness or wholesomeness. Others may think the word
‘Quality’ indicates nutritional quality, in that a certain food is good for
you. Still others may think ‘Quality’ means it tastes good, meaning that high
quality meat it is tender, juicy, and full of flavor. All of these are true.
However, in the beef industry when we talk about Quality
grading, we are talking about terms like Prime and Choice, and those terms help
us know how tender, juicy, and flavorful a beef cut may be based on the age of
the animal and the amount of marbling (the little flecks of fat found within
the muscles in a cut of beef). These grades are used to help farmers and meat
packers market their animals based on an indicator of eating satisfaction. Keep
in mind that grading
is different from Inspection, which determines whether or not the meat is
safe and wholesome, and grading is voluntary whereas inspection is required.
At the turn of the 20th century, someone in the
USDA decided that farmers and meat producers needed a consistent way to
determine if one beef carcass was superior to another, so they began to work on
ways to differentiate carcasses based on their eating satisfaction. There is a
very detailed history of
meat grading on the Texas A&M meat science website.
How are cattle graded?
Today, cattle are graded in beef processing plants by USDA
employees whose services are paid for by the beef packing companies. In some
plants, grades are applied with the help of cameras and computers.
 |
| I am not a USDA grader, but I can estimate grades. Here, I am grading some carcasses for a small processor. You can see how the carcass is cut for the grader to evaluate it. |
First, the grader
determines if the cattle are young. They look at specific bones along their
backbone to make this call. A very large percentage of the cattle that are
graded by USDA graders are young. Because the beef from older cattle can be
significantly tougher, they are graded differently. It can get pretty
complicated, but if it REALLY interests you, check it out on the Texas A&M meat science webpage.
Next, the grader looks at the marbling. That’s the important
part. Each carcass will be cut so the USDA grader can look at the ribeye muscle
at the 12th rib. They compare the marbling in each ribeye to the
marbling in a set of standardized cards to determine the Quality grade. The
graders give the carcasses marbling
scores that match up with the USDA quality grade.
What do the different grades mean?
USDA Prime.
Prime, the highest grade classification, has the greatest
amount of marbling (an Abundant, Moderately Abundant or Slightly Abundant
marbling score). Only about 4% of carcasses will grade Prime. These cuts are
sold in expensive restaurants and fancy hotels because they are the most tender
and juicy.
USDA Choice
Carcasses that qualify for Choice are considered high
quality, and having a high percentage of beef that grade Choice has always been
a goal of cattle producers. Today, about 2/3 of the beef carcasses graded in
the US qualify for Choice. All of the quality grades are divided into high,
average and low, but within Choice, those divisions are priced and marketed
separately.
Carcasses from the top two divisions in the Choice grade will
often qualify for one of many USDA
Certified programs, such as Certified
Angus Beef, Sterling Silver
Beef, or Chairman’s
Reserve. These marketing programs incorporate quality grade with other
carcass standards to set themselves apart. Having more marbling than low Choice
beef (Modest or Moderate marbling scores), these cuts are very tender and juicy
and are often found in nice restaurants and fancy grocery stores.
Low Choice
When beef is labeled
as USDA Choice, it is mostly likely low Choice beef. Still high quality cuts,
low Choice is found in many stores and restaurants. They have less marbling (a
Small marbling score) and are less expensive, but can still be tender and juicy
if prepared correctly.
USDA Select
Cuts that qualify for
the Select grade have less marbling than Choice (a Slight marbling score), but
these cuts are lean and full of protein. The Select grade is very uniform and
these cuts can be quite tender, juicy and flavorful, especially if braised or
prepared with marinades and cooked to lower degrees of doneness (medium rare).
They are the least expensive of the grades we have discussed.
There are other grade
classifications for carcasses that don’t have enough marbling to even grade
Select (USDA Standard) or carcasses from older animals (USDA Commercial and
Utility). You probably won’t see those advertised in a store or a restaurant. There
is also a whole different type of grading (Yield grading) that evaluates the
percentage of edible beef each carcass will produce based on how much muscle
and fat is in it, but those grades are largely used within the industry for
pricing, and not really marketed to consumers.
Quality grades are not
perfect indicators of beef tenderness. You may still find tough steaks that
were graded Prime, and you can probably find tender ones that were graded
Select. Meat scientists are always working on ways to improve our ability to
predict tenderness. (That was actually my
Master’s project.)
Hopefully, the next time you
go to the store or to a fancy steak restaurant, you’ll have a better
understanding of what these USDA Quality Grades mean. Please let me know if you
have any questions.
