source: Farm and Food Report
It is surprising how much changes in lifestyles can affect consumer habits, and ultimately the value of various agricultural products. Take the beef sector.
A study, conducted with the help of SAFRR’s Beef Development Fund and producers, has recently taken a fresh look at value-added beef development in response to market trends. Phyllis Shand is a researcher at the College of Agriculture’s Department of Applied Microbiology and Food Science at the University of Saskatchewan.
“In the early 1990s, we were witnessing a change in the value of various cuts in the beef carcass,” Shand explains. “While cuts from the loin region seemed to be increasing in value, the front and hip of the carcass became perceived as less consumer-friendly. Consequently, their values decreased.”
Shand attributes this to consumers leading busier lives and their need for quick and simple meal options. Most consumers judge the quality and overall acceptability of beef products based on tenderness, which has been identified as the single most important palatability factor affecting consumer satisfaction with beef.
“Although this may not be true of Saskatchewan in general, in larger urban centres, the food preparation knowledge around cuts that are perceived as less tender is being lost,” says Shand. “Evidence of that can be found in the decreasing popularity of traditional stewed dishes or pot roasts. People just don’t have the time to prepare them, and they will go for the more simple solutions: grilled steaks, roasts and ground beef — of which we seem to have an insatiable need.”
About half of the beef that makes it to market currently ends up as ground beef. While this market segment should not be neglected, exploring further avenues to respond to changing consumer needs is well worthy of study, indicates Shand. “We aim to keep beef competitive by finding new ways to process underutilized and undervalued parts.”
Because Shand and her colleagues had a background in meat processing — particularly in pork — they felt well equipped to start looking at new options. It turned out it was not as simple as that.
“We realized that we couldn’t simply take processing methods that worked in pork and apply them to beef,” Shand says. “We learned that we have to develop species-specific processes. Beef muscle implies different processing challenges because of its characteristics — each cut has its own. The chuck and the round each have unique features that we need to exploit.”
The findings from various studies conducted under this project suggest that marination by injection offers great potential in improving the palatability of lesser value cuts of meat. Mechanical treatment of meat tissue, including blade tenderization or tumbling, can also greatly enhance tenderness of tougher cuts such as round muscles. During tumbling, meat is rotated in large drums to disrupt the muscle fiber structure and to aid in marinade incorporation.
In addition, results suggest that moisture enhancement of lesser value cuts — followed by an appropriate cooking regime — offers a new means of ensuring consistently tender products.
The preservation of appearance and quality is essential during the distribution and merchandising of perishable products such as meat, so Shand’s research group has also looked at various packaging methods for fresh meats. After all, visual appearance is the only criterion consumers have at the point of purchase when selecting meat cuts. The way the product looks will influence consumers’ decisions, and technology that enhances this is valuable to the industry.
The good news is that the Saskatchewan Beef Development Fund approved funding for an additional five years of support for this research program. Shand is beaming at the significance of this.
“It means we will continue to have the infrastructure in place to continue our value-added beef research and to assist the industry in any expansion of beef processing activity taking place in the province — nothing less.”
For more information, contact:
Phyllis Shand
College of Agriculture
University of Saskatchewan
(306) 966-8842
It is surprising how much changes in lifestyles can affect consumer habits, and ultimately the value of various agricultural products. Take the beef sector.
A study, conducted with the help of SAFRR’s Beef Development Fund and producers, has recently taken a fresh look at value-added beef development in response to market trends. Phyllis Shand is a researcher at the College of Agriculture’s Department of Applied Microbiology and Food Science at the University of Saskatchewan.
“In the early 1990s, we were witnessing a change in the value of various cuts in the beef carcass,” Shand explains. “While cuts from the loin region seemed to be increasing in value, the front and hip of the carcass became perceived as less consumer-friendly. Consequently, their values decreased.”
Shand attributes this to consumers leading busier lives and their need for quick and simple meal options. Most consumers judge the quality and overall acceptability of beef products based on tenderness, which has been identified as the single most important palatability factor affecting consumer satisfaction with beef.
“Although this may not be true of Saskatchewan in general, in larger urban centres, the food preparation knowledge around cuts that are perceived as less tender is being lost,” says Shand. “Evidence of that can be found in the decreasing popularity of traditional stewed dishes or pot roasts. People just don’t have the time to prepare them, and they will go for the more simple solutions: grilled steaks, roasts and ground beef — of which we seem to have an insatiable need.”
About half of the beef that makes it to market currently ends up as ground beef. While this market segment should not be neglected, exploring further avenues to respond to changing consumer needs is well worthy of study, indicates Shand. “We aim to keep beef competitive by finding new ways to process underutilized and undervalued parts.”
Because Shand and her colleagues had a background in meat processing — particularly in pork — they felt well equipped to start looking at new options. It turned out it was not as simple as that.
“We realized that we couldn’t simply take processing methods that worked in pork and apply them to beef,” Shand says. “We learned that we have to develop species-specific processes. Beef muscle implies different processing challenges because of its characteristics — each cut has its own. The chuck and the round each have unique features that we need to exploit.”
The findings from various studies conducted under this project suggest that marination by injection offers great potential in improving the palatability of lesser value cuts of meat. Mechanical treatment of meat tissue, including blade tenderization or tumbling, can also greatly enhance tenderness of tougher cuts such as round muscles. During tumbling, meat is rotated in large drums to disrupt the muscle fiber structure and to aid in marinade incorporation.
In addition, results suggest that moisture enhancement of lesser value cuts — followed by an appropriate cooking regime — offers a new means of ensuring consistently tender products.
The preservation of appearance and quality is essential during the distribution and merchandising of perishable products such as meat, so Shand’s research group has also looked at various packaging methods for fresh meats. After all, visual appearance is the only criterion consumers have at the point of purchase when selecting meat cuts. The way the product looks will influence consumers’ decisions, and technology that enhances this is valuable to the industry.
The good news is that the Saskatchewan Beef Development Fund approved funding for an additional five years of support for this research program. Shand is beaming at the significance of this.
“It means we will continue to have the infrastructure in place to continue our value-added beef research and to assist the industry in any expansion of beef processing activity taking place in the province — nothing less.”
For more information, contact:
Phyllis Shand
College of Agriculture
University of Saskatchewan
(306) 966-8842
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