TYPES AND MARKET CLASSES OF LIVE STOCK 49 



These questions bring up the demands of consumers of 

 meats, for the butcher is guided by what the consumer of beef 

 wants and will pay for. You and I are consumers of meat, and 

 what we like, or dislike, together with the size of our pocket- 

 book, guides the butcher who buys our cattle. Now what do 

 we want? We want meat that is (1) nutritious, (2) tender, 

 (3) juicy, (4) of good flavor, (5) attractive in appearance, and 

 (6) has a small amount of outside fat. Provided beef is well 

 ripened in the cooler and well cooked, there is not much varia- 

 tion in its nutritive or food value. The tenderness depends 

 upon the work the muscle has done and upon the amount of 

 marbling it carries. It is impossible to get too much marbling, 

 the more the better. Meat free from fat shrivels and drys up 

 when roasted, becoming dry and tough. Ageing or ripening 

 in the cooler helps to make meat tender. Juiciness results from 

 the presence of fat and manner of cooking. The flavor depends 

 mostly upon fatness and upon proper ripening of the carcass. 

 The cuts of beef which are most attractive in appearance are 

 those with bright, rich, red lean, snow-white fat, and a high 

 degree of marbling. The consumer desires a maximum of lean 

 meat well marbled, and a minimum of bone and outside fat 

 in the cuts of beef. 



All carcasses not suitable for side beef. Carcass beef 

 which is thick and fat enough so that the entire side can be 

 sold over the butcher's block in retail cuts is known as "block 

 beef" or "side beef." Carcasses that are not thick enough in 

 flesh to be entirely utilized by the retailer are called "cutters." 

 The loins and ribs of cutters may be sold over the block. "Can- 

 ners" are the worst carcasses to be found, from which none of 

 the regular wholesale cuts may be sold over the block, but which 

 must be disposed of as boneless fresh meats and cured beef 

 products. In this chapter our attention is confined to side 

 beef and to a study of the qualifications of a good carcass. 



1. Weight of carcass. The heaviest carcasses seldom 

 exceed 1,050 pounds, and the minimum is about 250 pounds. 

 Sufficient finish and quality are not often found in carcasses 

 weighing less than 800 pounds. No definite line as to weight 

 can be drawn between carcasses of beef and veal, because there 

 are many factors determining the character of the flesh. The 

 greatest demand is for carcasses from 1,200- to 1,400-pound 

 steers, and most of the cattle coming to market are of about 

 these weights. Such carcasses yield retail cuts of a size to 



