Breed performance similar during finishing period, but differences noted at the abattoir
Take Home Message: Charolais and Limousin cattle perform similarly, but carcass fat and eye muscle area is lower in Charolais when slaughtered at the same liveweight, whilst meat toughness is not affected by breed
Progeny of both the Charolais and Limousin breed perform similarly during the finishing period, although Limousin progeny have a higher dressing proportion, a higher fat cover and produced larger eye muscles than Charolais progeny.
This were just some of the conclusions of a study, carried out by researchers from the Agri-Food and Bioscience Institute (AFBI) and Teagasc, that set out to evaluate sire breed (Charolais or Limousin) and gender (steer or heifer) on performance during the finishing period, carcass parameters and meat quality.
“We also found that heifers had a lower dressing proportion and a higher fat cover than steers,” AFBI’s Francis Lively told delegates at this year’s British Society of Animal Science’s annual conference. “Meat from progeny of both breeds and from both genders also had a similar toughness as assessed by Warner Bratzler shear force,” he added.
Outlining the rational behind his team’s work, he said that that UK beef herd comprised a diverse range of suckler cow genotypes and terminal sires. “And this results in major variability in the animals presented for slaughter each day.”
A total of 427 experimental animals from a series of studies were finished indoors on slatted accommodation on a range of diets and slaughtered at the same meat plant during a two-year period.
Animals were progeny from the suckler herd and sired by either a Charolais or Limousin bull. The animals included 289 and 138 Charolais (CH) and Limousin (LIM) progeny, and 120 and 307 heifers and steers, respectively.
At slaughter carcasses were hung tender stretch and meat quality assessment was carried out on the longissimus dorsi muscle.
“And we found that Limousin progeny had a higher dressing proportion relative to Charolais progeny, while steers had a higher dressing proportion relative to heifers,” said Dr Lively.
“Charolais progeny produced leaner carcasses than Limousin progeny, but however progeny from both breeds produced carcasses with a similar weight and conformation.
“Limousin progeny had larger eye muscle areas than Charolais progeny. And steers produced heavier and leaner carcasses relative to heifers.
“Charolais animals produced meat with a similar ultimate pH and Warner Bratzler shear force to meat from Limousin progeny, but Charolais meat had a higher cooking loss than Limousin meat,” he added.
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