Beef undergoes a dual grading process: quality grades assess the meat’s tenderness, juiciness, flavor, and color, while yield grades estimate the proportion of boneless, retail cuts obtainable from the primary sections of beef—round, loin, rib, and chuck. While grading is optional, it serves as the widely recognized standard for determining market value of beef. Its purpose is to categorize carcasses into consistent groups that share similar quality, yield, and market value, thereby streamlining marketing and production choices.

The quality of beef meat is the result of a complex interplay of genetic, nutritional, managerial, and processing factors. Each stage of production, from breed selection to feeding practices, from slaughter techniques to post-slaughter handling, plays a crucial role in determining the final quality of the meat. Proper management and optimization of these factors can significantly enhance meat quality, ensuring a product that is tender, flavorful, and nutritionally valuable for consumers. The quality of beef meat is influenced by a multitude of factors that can be categorized into pre-slaughter, slaughter, and post-slaughter stages. The following content dives into the pre-slaughter factors.

Pre-slaughter factors significantly impact beef meat quality. These include feed management in beef cattle operations, animal stress, handling practices, and transportation conditions. Proper understanding and management of these aspects are crucial for ensuring optimal meat quality and consumer satisfaction, leading to a profitable beef operation with a minimal impact on the environment.

1. Impact of breed on quality of meat:
   Different cattle breeds produce meat with varying characteristics. Specific cattle breeds can influence marbling, tenderness, and overall meat quality. For example, Angus and Wagyu breeds are known for their marbled and tender meat.

2. Impact of genetics on meat quality of beef:
   Genetic selection for desirable traits of beef cattle such as muscle growth, fat deposition, and disease resistance can enhance meat quality by improving tenderness, marbling, and flavor. Killing-out percentage of beef (KO%) is the carcass weight as a percentage of liveweight. Genetics of beef can increase KO%, pure bred meat breeds will have higher muscle/offal ratio than crossbred or milk derived breeds.

3. Impact of sex on meat quality:
   Sex and castration can have an impact on meat quality of beef. Female and steers typically grow at a lower pace if compared with bulls. On the contrary, female and steers will produce a better marbled meat, thus influencing tenderness and juiciness of beef cattle meat.

4. Impact of feeding on meat quality of beef:
   The type and quality of feed has a big impact on meat quality of beef cattle. A grain-rich diet for beef cattle often leads to better marbling and tenderness, while a grass-fed diet for beef can result in leaner meat with a distinct flavor profile and higher omega-3 fatty acids1.

5. Impact of management and animal welfare standards on meat quality of beef:
   Handling, housing, and overall treatment of cattle can also have an impact om meat quality. Stress, particularly in the period close to slaughter can deplete glycogen levels in beef cattle2. Stress reduction and good welfare practices improve meat quality by reducing the likelihood of issues such as dark, firm, and dry (DFD) meat3.

6. Age and weight of beef cattle at slaughter:
   Younger animals generally produce more tender meat, while older animals can have tougher meat. Specifically in bulls, age is linked to higher levels of testosterone, and this is linked to higher collagen deposit that will result in tougher meat.

7. Beef cattle health:
   Health status of beef cattle, including disease and parasite management has an impact on meat quality of beef. Healthy beef cattle produce higher quality meat, free from disease-related defects.

Nutrition plays a crucial role in determining the quality of beef meat. The type and balance of nutrients provided to cattle throughout their lifecycle can significantly influence meat characteristics such as tenderness, marbling, flavor, and nutritional value.

Feedlot beef cattle are typically finished on a grain-based diet to promote rapid weight gain and desirable marbling. This high-energy diet, often a mix of corn, wheat, barley or sorghum, is adjusted to optimize growth and meat quality before slaughter.

A grain-fed diet has an impact on flavor, fat composition texture and color of beef meat:

• The flavor grain-fed beef is milder and often sweeter due to higher fat content.
• Fat composition is different, because meat from grain-fed beef is higher in intramuscular fat (marbling), which enhances tenderness and juiciness.
• Meat from grain-fed beef is usually lighter in color and has a finer texture.

Protein supplements for beef cattle:

Protein supplements for beef cattle enhance muscle growth and improve feed conversion efficiency. The increased muscle mass results in better meat yield and potentially improved tenderness.

Vitamin and mineral supplements for beef cattle:

Vitamin E acts as an antioxidant, protecting muscle tissues from oxidative damage. This improves oxidative stability, extending shelf life and maintaining color and flavor.

Selko AO Mix contains a mix of plant polyphenols and is an effective antioxidant for partial vitamin E replacement. The carefully selected polyphenols in Selko AO Mix can provide the antioxidant protection needed by an animal and partly replace more expensive vitamin E in beef cattle diets (see Figures 1 and 2). This results in a multi-pronged and cost efficient approach that offers broad protection against free radicals.

Vitamin A: Vitamin A is essential for growth, immune function, and overall health of beef cattle. Vitamin A supports healthy growth, contributing to higher quality meat.

Vitamin D: Vitamin D regulates calcium and phosphorus absorption and is therefore essential for bone health of beef cattle. Vitamin D in cattle enhances bone and muscle development, leading to better meat texture and tenderness.

Selenium: Selenium works with vitamin E as an antioxidant. Selenium for beef cattle enhances oxidative stability, preventing rancidity maintaining color and extending shelf life of beef cattle meat.

Zinc: Zinc is crucial for protein synthesis and immune function of beef cattle. Zinc in beef cattle promotes healthy growth and muscle development, improving tenderness and juiciness of meat. A trial5 carried out with Selko IntelliBond Z showed that Increasing the level of zinc in a beef diet tended (p = 0.13) to increase marbling score.

Iron: Iron is vital for oxygen transport in the blood. Iron in beef diets contributes to maintaining a bright red color, indicative of freshness and high quality of meat.

The source of trace mineral supplementation for feedlot cattle also has an impact on carcass quality. In a trial carried out by the Colorado State University4, the effect on carcass quality of steers of feeding Selko IntelliBond hydroxy trace minerals was compared to feeding sulphates or a combination of organic trace minerals and sulphates (see Table 1).

Probiotics for beef cattle:

Probiotics for beef cattle are live microorganisms that provide health benefits when administered in adequate amounts. Probiotics are often used in feedlot cattle because they enhance digestive health, improving nutrient absorption and feed conversion efficiency. The improvement of feed conversion, leads to improved growth and meat quality. Probiotics for beef cattle also strengthen the immune system, reducing disease incidence and promoting healthy growth. Better nutrient assimilation leads to improved meat quality in terms of texture and flavor.

Prebiotics for beef cattle:

Prebiotics for beef cattle are non-digestible food components that promote the growth of beneficial gut bacteria. Prebiotics that are used in feedlot cattle Improve gut health and nutrient absorption, supporting uniform and healthy growth. This reduces feed costs and enhances meat quality.

Selko LactiBute is a patented prebiotic formulation, containing rumen protected calcium gluconate. It has been shown to improve hindgut health, reducing the risk of hindgut acidosis in beef cattle and "leaky gut". This results in an increase of NDF digestibility, feed and efficiency growth and an improvement of health2,3.

Omega-3 fatty acids:

Omega-3 fatty acids can improve the nutritional profile of meat. Feeding omega-3 fatty acids to beef cattle enhances the meat’s omega-3 content, which is beneficial for consumer health. This can also improve meat tenderness and juiciness.

Antioxidants:

Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) acts as an antioxidant and helps maintain meat color. It enhances meat color stability and prevents oxidative damage. Plant extract supplements for beef cattle like Selko AO Mix are natural antioxidants that iprove the shelf life and flavor stability of meat.,

Finishing:

Finishing is the final phase of feeding, typically involving a grain-rich diet to enhance marbling. A finishing diet of beef cattle increases intramuscular fat, improving tenderness, juiciness, and flavor.

Weaning:

Weaning of beef calves involves the transition from maternal milk to solid feed. Proper weaning management of beef calves ensures healthy growth and reduces stress, which can negatively affect meat quality of beef.

Beef cattle nutrition plays a pivotal role in determining the quality of beef, with the type of feed, dietary supplements, and feeding techniques having a direct impact on the meat’s characteristics. Strategic nutritional management, including managing trace minerals in beef cattle and the use of dietary supplements, is crucial for enhancing meat quality. This approach not only improves cattle growth and health but also optimizes nutrient absorption. Essential vitamins and minerals, along with probiotics and prebiotics, support overall health and contribute to specific quality attributes such as tenderness, marbling, flavor, color, and shelf life of beef meat. By focusing on proper management and balanced supplementation of beef cattle, producers can ensure that the beef meets consumer expectations for taste, appearance, and health benefits, thereby delivering a superior product.