GRADING BEEF A RECOMMENDED PROCEDURE FOR MEASURING AND FOR CARCASS EVAIUATI ON

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1 89. A RECOMMENDED PROCEDURE FOR MEASURING AND FOR CARCASS EVAIUATI ON GRADING BEEF Experiment s t a t i o n workers a r e concerned with t h e efficient u t i l i zation of t h e nation s agricultural r e s o w c e ~and improved standards of l i v ing f o r t h e consumer. To accomplish t h i s objective more information i s needed concerning t h e e f f e c t of various production p r a c t i c e s upon t h e character of t h e endproduct, An endproduct of considerable importance i s t h e beef carcass, Methods f o r the evaluation of beef carcaases a r e not y e t standardized because enough is not knam regarding t h e u t i l i t y of t h e methods. It i s f e l t t h a t standardized procedures w i l l do much t o help evaluate t h e u t i l i t y of t h e various methods, The purpose of t h i s paper l e aimed toward t h e goal of standard procedures i n beef carcass measuring and grading. A paper on beef c u t t i n g procedures has j u s t been presented, These procedures are timeconsumiw and aome i n s t i t u t i o n s do not have adequate fac i l i t i e s f o r t h e c u t t i n g and t h e disposal of t h e amount of product required. A p a r t i a l s o l u t i o n t o t h e two obstacles of l a c k of time and inadequate f a c i l i t i e s may be accomplished by t h e use of cwcaaa measurements, The value of t h e various measurements ha8 not been completely determined, nor m e t h e measurements preaented i n t h i s paper t h e only ones available. Carcass measure ments a r e cuetomarily taken i n t h e cooler thus obviating t h e necessity of breaking down t h e carcaae t o obtain t h e measurements and w i l l be discussed on t h a t basis, The d e t a i l s f o r taking measurements of wholesale beef c u t s may be obtained f rom t h e Bureau of Animal Industry. P r i o r t o taking t h e measurements, t h e c l a s s i f i c a t i o n and carcase weight should be noted. Experience i n c o l l e c t i n g data on an appreciable number of carcaeses indicates t h a t h e i f e r s and a t e e r s may not belong t o t h e same population and should be considered separately. It is suggested t h a t cold carcass weights be taken a f t e r a fortyeight hour c h i l l. However, when the data i s collected i n cooperation with a commercial packer, obtaining cold carcass weights i s contrary t o normal cooler procedure and it i s often neceasary t o improvise. A f a i r l y s a t i s f a c t o r y procedure i s t o take t h e hot C a r c a m weight and subtract a standard shrink. Most of t h e packers know rather accurately how much shrink t o expect for a fortyeight hour period. The shrink f a c t o r used by t h e packer i a t h e 1086 due t o t h e shrink f rom a l l the carcasses i n t h e cooler and this may not be too acourate when used fw i n dividual carcasses, Standard carca8s weights should be diecussed l a t e r in t h e program and an approved plan adopted. The amount of equipment necessary t o make carcam measurements i s. r a t b r limited. A f l e x i b l e steel tape is ueed when making t h e majority of t h e measurements. It should be s i x f e e t long, have a white background with black numerals and be c a l i b r a t e d i n millimeters. A p a i r of eighteen o r t w e f i t y inch outside measuring c a l i p e r s a r e needed f o r t h e width measurements. A rigid m i l l i m e t e r r u l e i s needed t o be uaed i n conjunction with t h e c a l i p e r s. For mking t h e eye muscle measurements a compensating polar planimeter, prot r a c t o r, and a transparent millimeter r u l e are needed, A platform or s t e p ladder must be provided t o stand on, Other incidontals include skewers o r shroud pins, t r a c i n g paper, and an eight by eleven inch piece of heavy wax impregnated cardboard t o be used f o r a square.

2 90. Unribbed Carcass Side: Length of body The length of body i s determined by measuring from t h e a n t e r i o r edge of t h e 1st thoracic vertebra t o t h e ant e r i o r edge (lowest point) of t h e a i t c h bone. Length of hind l e g The length of hind leg i s measured from t h e a n t e r i o r edge (lowest p o i n t ) of t h e a i t c h bone t o t h e higheet point of t h e hock j o i n t. This i e at t h e smooth j o i n t where t h e f o o t and l e g have been removed (between first tarsal and t h e l a r g e metatarsal bones). Total length of carcasa The t o t a l carcass length i s t h e sum of t h e length of body and length of hind l e g meaaurements. Circumference of round Measuring t h e circumference of t h e round is t h e most d i f f i c u l t of a l l t h e measurements but becomes f a i r l y simple with a l i t t l e p r a c t i c e. The circumference of t h e round is measured perpendicular t o t h e length of t h e hind l e g measuremerit s i x t y percent of t h e distance from t h e hock t o t h e a n t e r i o r edge of the a i t c h bone. The procedure i s a B follows: e s t a b l i s h a s t r a i g h t l i n e between the two points used when determining t h e length of hind l e g s with skewers o r shroud pins. Place one skewer (a) exactly s i x t y percent of t h e distance from t h e hock j o i n t t o t h e a n t e r i o r edge of t h e a i t c h bone on t h e previously established l i n e. From t h i s point place a skewer (b) along 8 l i n e perpendicular t o the previously established l i n e on t h e a n t e r i o r s i d e of the round and another ( c ) i n t h e same manner on t h e posterior side of the round. This establishes t h e t h r e e necessary guides ( a, b, and c ), An 8 x U. inch piece of w a x impregnated cardboard may be used when placing these skewers perpendicular to t h e length of l e g. Measure t h e circumference by placing a s t e e l tape below these t h r e e mentioned skewers and taking a reading a f t e r making sure t h e tape i s t a u t and touchin8 all three of t h e skewers, Depth of body The depth of body i o measured frox; t h e dorsal s i d e of t h e s p i n a l canal st t h e 5 t h thoracic vertebra t o t h e v e n t r a l side of t h e sternum ( b r e a s t bone) with t h e tape being held p a r a l l e l t o t h e f l o o r. Some work has been done using the 7th thoracic vertebra as t h e o r i g i n of t h e measurement and it was often found impossible t o hold t h e tape p a r a l l e l with t h e f l o o r due t o t h e curvature of the ribs causirg t h e sternum t o end o r stop a n t e r i o r t o t h i s p o i n t, Length of l o i n Measure t h e length of l o i n from the a n t e r i o r edge of t h e a i t c h bone t o t h e middle of t h e 12th thoracic vert e b r a. The l a t t e r point i s t h e t h e o r e t i c a l place where t h e l o i n and r i b a r e separated when t h e carcass is ribbed 8nd may be located by c0untip.g down seven and onehalf vertebras from, t h e rise i n t h e backbone, Width of shoulder Measure t h e width of shoulder from ineide of the carcass a t t h e f i r s t thoracic vertebra t o t h e outside of the shoulder with 18 o r 20 inch outside measuring c a l i p e r s. Hold t h e axis o f t h e c a l i p e r s i n a median plame t o t h e carcass

3 91 and p a r a l l e l t o the f l o o r. The sum of the measurements of the r i g h t and l e f t side I s used. This eliminatee any source of e r r o r t h a t might be due t o uneven s p l i t t i n g of the backbone. Determine the width of the round by measuring (8) Width of round with t h e c a l i p e r s from inside the carcass a t the highest point of the a i t c h bone t o t h e outside of the round. Hold the axis of t h e c a l i p e r s i n a median plane t o the carcass and p a r a l l e l t o the f l o o r, The sum of the measurements of the r k h t and l e f t sides is used. Bibbed Carcass Side: The measurements taken from t h e ribbed carcasa elde a r e designed t o charracterize the eye muscle (longissimus d o r s i ) and the adjacent external f a t. The measurements a r e c u s t o m a l l y taken from a tracing of t h i a portion of t h e carcass because it is d i f f i c u l t t o take the measurements d i r e c t l y from the r i b cut. The tracings also permit making the measurements a t one's leisure. The tracing should be made on a tranbparent, nonabsorbent paper which has a s u i t a b l e surface f o r w r i t i n g, PTM173 tracing paper meets these specificstlons. A sharp pointed lead pencil ehould be used when making the tracing, The eye muscle and the external f a t covering a r e traced a s l n d i cated. For t h i s measurement it I s necessary t o (1) Area of eye muscle follow the o u t l i n e of t h e eye muscle with a compensating polar planimeter. This i s t h e distance (2) Length of eye muscle of the eye muscle. of the long a x i s The average of three measurements is (3) Width of eye muscle taken f o r t h e w i d t h of eye muscle. The first l e made perpendicularr t o the l i n e used i n determini% t h e length of the eye muscle a t a point onehalf the length of t h e eye. The second l e p a r a l l e l t o the f i r s t a t a point onefourth the length of t h e eye muscle from the v e n t r a l edge of the eye muscle. The t h i r d i s p a r a l l e l t o t h e first a t a point onefourth t h e length o f t h e eye muscle from t h e dorsal edge of t h e eye muscle. (4) Width of f a t Measure from the outside of t h e f a t where the surface of the f a t i s perpendicular t o t h e three points on t h e outside of the eye muscle t h a t were used determining the width of eye measurement. The average of the three meamrements i s used. From the r e e u l t s of experimental work I t is doubtful If any single measurement can be used t o predict accurately the cutout or grade of a carcaes. Therefore, I t l e suggested t h a t several measuremonts might be used i n an index o r multiple c o r r e l a t i o n i n order t o predict t h e desired carcass c h a r a c t e r i s t i c. The job of evaluating the various combinations of the measurements t h a t have been presented I s an etormoue t a s k. Therefore, i n v e s t i g a t o r s should pool the* information i n order t o prevent any duplicat i o n of e f f o r t, Two I l l u s t r a t i o n s of combining measurement Into an index axe:

4 92. L / B C E Thie is calculated by dividing the length (1) Plumpness of round of leg i n t o the circumference of the round and multiplying t h e quotient by one hundred. (2) Ribeye index This I s determined by dividing the length of eye muscle by the width of eye muecle and multiplying t h e quot i e n t by one hundred, Regardless of personal bias subjective scoring is t h e o n l y method now available t o evaluate many of the f a c t o r s considered i n beef carcass e valuation. Until additional objective techniques can be developed, use must be made of t h i s subjective scoring. Improvements can and should be made al6ng t h i s l i n e. The f i r s t subjective score t o be considered should be the composite carcass grade. It is recommended t h a t federal grades be determined t o onet h i r d of a grade, It i s advisable t h a t the grade be determined by a committee of f a d e r a l graders. Since it is seldom feasible t o procure a committee of federal graders, most often t h e committee w i l l be composed of federal graders and other experienced meat men. I n e i t h e r case, it is Imperative t h a t t h e same graders determine t h e grade of a l l carcasses from any single experiment. The portions of t h e U. S. D. A. Beef Carcass Grading Chart p e r t a i n ing t o f i n i s h and q u a l i t y can have much u t i l i t y i n characterizing t h e grade of individual carcasees. When using t h i s chart c e r t a i n baeic principles t h a t

5 93 a r e often overlooked must be considered. Often the person scoring t h e i n d i vidual carcass f a c t o r s is unduly influenced by the composite carcass grade and does not score each f a c t o r on i t s merits, The r e s u l t of t h i s Influence is a score sheet w i t h the scorea of the Individual f a c t o r s closely grouped arowld t h e carcass grade i n such a way that the carcass grade i s an arithmetic average of these scores. There i s a deepseated f a l l a c y i n t h i e type of scoring because of the v a r i a t i o n of t h e individual f a c t o r s found in carcasses of the eame grade, For instance, i n t h e U. S. Commercial g r a d e extreme v a r i a t i o n s may be found in the a i z e of kidney knob from "very large amount" i n the c a m of mature heavy cows t o "deficient" or "very deficient" i n t h e cabe of yowlg lightweight carcasses, This is an extreme example, but similar v a r i a t i o n may a l s o be found i n other factors. Likewise, the composite grade should be j u s t i f i a b l e from the scores on the grading chart yet the Individual f a c t o r s a r e not always weighted the same on d i f f e r e n t carcasses due t o the influence of other factors, The most accurate method of scoring a carcass w i t h the Beef Carcass Grading Chart would be t o have the grading committee determine t h e scores on each carcass. A committee decision would have t o be made on the various f a c t o r s scored f o r each carcass. T h i s would require, however, to0 much time where a oonsiderable number ( f i f t y o r more) of carcasses a r e t o be measured, graded, and scored i n a day, It I s mandatory then t h a t one of t h e grading committee do the scoring, Th'e general a t t i t u d e of the f e d e r a l graders apparently i s t h a t technically trained people can do a more satiefactory job scoring the degree of excellence of t h e individual grade f a c t o r s, The provision should be made t o have a competent pereon do the scoring of the individual grade f a c t o r s. Workers ehould not be offended i f the federal grader declines t o f i l l out the beef grading charts. T h i s i s no excuse f o r t h e investigator t o assume he must a l s o do the grading, Due t o t h e i r training, supervision, and the d a i l y g r a d i n g of carcaeses, federal graders can do a more consistent job of grading. This i s p a r t i c u l a r l y necessary i n t h e case of regional and coopera t i v e prodects. It i s therefore advisable t o take advantage of t h e services of the Federal graders whenever possible, I n conclusion, tbe following recommendations Elre made concerning the grading of beef carcasses and scoring Beef Carcass Cradlng Charts. 1. A l l carcasse8 be graded t o onethird Federal made. 2. The CWCRSS grade committee be composed of f e d e r a l graders and include the person who i s t o store the carcame8 on the beef c a r c a ~ sgrading chart. 3. The beef carcass grading chart be f i l l e d by well qualified, conscientioue personnel, 4. The scoring of beef ca.rcass charts be considered In future grading c l i n i c s echedulea i n cmjunct1on w i t h the A n n u a l Reciprocal Meat Conferericee.

6 94... M. HANKINS: I would l i k e t o say t h a t i n o w working i n the Department, we have found t h e weight of the beef carcasa, divided by t h e length of t h e beef carcass, giving us what we c a l l the weight per u n i t of length t o be a f a c t o r which i s correlated very well with grading 9 I would l i k e t o recommend t h a t f o r your c a r e f u l consideration &om t h i s point on. I am mentioning t h i s t o supplement what Naumann s a i d about objective indices of carcass grading. W e g o t some q u i t e high c o r r e l a t i o n s i n somewhat limited s t u d i e s of t h a t r e l a t i o n s h i p. CHAIRMAN MACKINTOSH: Thank you, W. Hankins, I n making t h e s e l e c t i o n of t h e individuals within the Committee t o compile these r e p o r t s, we endeavored t o s e l e c t t h a t individua l who had been doing s p e c i f i c work of a c e r t a i n type. That was the priuwy reason we asked Mr. Naumann t o work on tbeae measurements, because he had had coaaiderable experience Ln t h a t work. I appreciate very much the r e p o r t t h a t he has made, and the recommendations toward standardization of t h e measuring of c a r c a s s e ~, Some m a y question tha a d v i s a b i l i t y of doing such work, That c r i t i c i s m can always be made of experimental work, As 411 of you know, we frequently do many things t h a t l a t e r prove of l i t t l e value, b u t out of the mas8 of d a t a accumulated, there is usually a t l e a a t one Item t h a t j u s t i f i e s the e f f o r t, I am personally very pleaeed with t h e recommendation that t h e individual i n charge of the experimental work apply tho descript i v e terms, There i s a tendency on t h e p a r t of the grader, t h a t having designated t h e grade, which he should do, and i s much b e t t e r q u a i f i e d t o do than any of us because t h a t i s h i s buainess, t o take and run d a m the d e s c r i p t i o n t h a t should f i t t h a t grade, i r r e s p e c t i v e of t h e terms t h a t might apply t o a s p e c i f i c c a r c a ~ s. If you g e t t h e r i g h t graders, o r i f you g e t those i n charge of the work, you do not have t h a t d i f f i c u l t y, but a8 you come down t h e l i n e, p a r t i c u l a r l y with new men i n t h e work, they themselvee a r e not f a m i l i a r w i t h t h e d e s c r i p t i v e terms, so then I c e r t a i n l y endorse t h a t recommendation. A t least I endorse t h a t recammendation of t h e individual i n charge of t h e experimental work applying t h e d e s c r i p t i v e terms t o the carcass. Now, insofar as t h i s photographic work i s concerned, I: thlnk possibly t h e beat contribution t h a t Kaneas S t a t e w i l l have t o o f f e r is t h e method of photographing the eye muscle, If you have J u s t one or two carcasses a t home, you have l i t t l e d i f f i c u l t y. You have ample time and opportunity t o r e p e a t t h e work. However, if you happen t o be working i n a packer's cooler, where t i m e i s a big f a c t o r, and where it i s inconvenient insofar a8 t h e packer i s concerned, t o t i e up a whole l i n e of c ~ c a s s e aany length of t i m e before shipping them, some means of r e c o r d i w t h a t eye muscle r a t h e r r a p i d l y and accurately i s desirable.

7 95. I n using a 35 m i l l i m e t e r camera, mounted on a standard t r i p o d a t ti given distance from t h e eye m u ~ c l e,and with a s c a l e attached, we have been able t o g e t very s a t i s f a c t o r y photographs. A l l t h a t remains t o be done i s when you are i n a s i t u a t i o n where you f i n d you have aome l e l s u r e tine, you can put those on t h e enl a r g l z q machine, and enlarge t h e eye muscle up t o t h e standard, e i t h e r make your measurements on t h e screen, or make your t r a c i n g, Elr. Stalls, who is from Texas A. & M., who has been doing t h a t work during t h e paet yeas, has found t h a t he has a c o r r e l a t i o n of.9s, I think it is, between t h e measurements made on t h e eye muscle, and those made from t h e reproductions, m d we a r e inclined t o f e e l t h a t t h e e r r o r t h e r e I s on t h e ' t r a c i n g, r a t h e r than on those made from t h e photograph, a s has been indicated. I hope t h a t possibly we w i l l be a b l e t o forward a sketch of t h a t t o be included i n t h i s report. I think it w i l l be possible, but it was not ready a t t h i s time. I might a l s o endoree t h e change t h a t has been made i n t h e measuring of t h e depth of t h e carcas8 for t h e same reason a s was given. I f you take t h e seventh r i b, you very frequently a r e beyond a specific carcass point on t h e v e n t r a l surface f'romwhich t o make your measurement. Therefore, t h e need f o r standardization is apparent because we have been making o w measurements of depth, for instance, from t h e center of t h e s p i n a l column, and I think t h e recommendation was from t h e v e n t r a l edge, wa8 t h a t r i g h t? so. MR. NAUMAMN: I think it was from t h e v e n t r a l side, I believe CHAIRMAN MACKINTOSH: i z a t i o n of procedure. That i l l u s t r a t e s t h e need f o r standard I would l i k e t o i n v i t e f u r t h e r discussion from t h e f l o o r. MR. PLAGJZR: How i s t h i e dressiw percent y i e l d calculated? What weight8 a r e t o be ueed? MR. I " : The dressiri$ percent would take t h e slaughter weight, t h e weight before slaughter, and then a weight, I would suggest, 48 hours after slaughter, because t h a t is t h e t i m e t h e cmcasses are going t o be graded, but it i e customary t o t a k e 24 hours' weight, and then you have t o w a i t a day t o come back and make your measurements and take your weight, and p a r t i c u l a r l y your grades, I suggest 48 hours because of t h a t. I believe it i s recommended generally t h a t it be the 24 hour weight, MR. PLAGER: The reaeon I ask t h i s question i s I assume t h a t t h e rcethod of t a k i r g theee c a t t l e of9 feed and water, s h a l l we say, a t a given number o f h o w B befors slaughter, i s an endeavor t o bring these c a t t l e t o a standard degree of fu3.j.ness o r emptiness, a s you 5 0 choose t o c a l l it. I question a l i t t l e b i t whether yola w i l l g e t t h e job done i n a uniform manner. I think you have t h e d a t a here, however, which w i l l permit you t o make the correction when you take the weight of t h e paunch, and t h e

8 96. i n t e s t i n e s, and t h e i r contents, A t l e a s t it has been our experience I n t h e slaughter of hogs, and I t h i n k the same principle w i l l hold t r u e i n c a t t l e. It makes a difference how w a r m or cold it I s ; and you a r e going t o be slaughtering c a t t l e f o r q u i t e a wide section, and you are going t o have a g r e a t deal of v a r i a t i o n i n some of these conditione, and it i s going t o make a difference i n t h e degree of f i l l in these c a t t l e. I would think that some thoysht should be given t o etandardiz1% t h e l i v e weight more on the basis of standard amounts of f i l l, rather than standard t h e e off feed and water. There axe two f a c t o r s t h a t should be considered grade and yield, and quite a sincere e f f o r t i s being made t o accurately determine the grade. I do not think the e f f o r t t o determine the yield has r e ceived a8 much attention, a~ I t h i n k it should. 0 MR. NAUMA": I would like t o say t h a t it wag not my suggest i o n t h a t w e have a standard shrink. That r e a l l y was not i n the scope of t h e paper. A t our S t a t i o n we have discussed a t lewth what would be t h e e wondered if perhaps i n terms of a best slaughter weight today. W s t a n d d shrink, if we had a standard f i l l, it would not be satisfactory. If you m e working with a carca88 i n a commercial cooler I t i s d i f f i c u l t t o g e t the i n t e s t i n a l t r a c t. MR. HANKLNS: I think Carroll has raised a very pertinent question. It is one t h a t cannot be considered l i g h t l y, or perhaps answer.ed quickly. We a l l know t h a t the f l l l f a c t o r i s extremely important i n c a t t l e slaughter t e s t s. It is t r u e t h a t the recommendation provides f o r determining what might be called an empty body weightthat is, the entire weight of the c r i t t e r minus the contents of t h e digestive t r a c t, We frequently c a l c u l a t e y i e l d s on the basis of the empty body weight. You c r i t i c i z e t h a t method, and it i s abnormal, but it i s accurate, and you g e t highly comparable data. I see some merit t o t h e standard f i l l, but we immediately meet problems because these c a t t l e w i l l not a l l weigh the same amount. What w i l l be t h e standard f i l l? No doubt it w i l l vary w i t h the l i v e weight of the animal o r should vaxy w i t h t h e l i v e weight of t h e animal, Obviously you can take 8 c e r t a i n fill f o r a 1200 pound eteer, and have t h e same fill f o r an 800 pound s t e e r. I do not know t h a t we are prepwed w i t h the data t o say r i g h t now what t h e standard f i l l s should be as far as weight i s concerned. Returning t o the point, t h a t perhaps t h e calculation of yield on mpty body weight i s worthy of very serious consideration, I n the f1 analysis, we want data t h a t is accurate, dependable, and w i t h one woup of animals comparable t o another, W e are dealing w i t h something t h a t i s extremely variable. CHAIRMAN MACKINTOSH: A t t h e moment I t h i n k w e have a double queation on shrinkage. Mr. Plager and Mr, Eankina had s t r i c t reference

9 97.." t o t h e shrink of the l i v e animal, and considered "cooler shrinkage NarlmRnn had reference t o what i s I am eorry t h a t I wa8 not present when Mr, Deans presented h i s paper on slaughter work, Some years ago, when we were working w i t h c a t t l e, we used a figure indicated by Mr. Bankins, which was acquired by deducting the f i l l from the a c t u a l weight, which can be done when you a r e i n the laboratory a t home, and we called it t h e "net body weight." I do not know whether that was generally accepted or not, but t h a t was the term we used, and some others used it, and we made some calculations Prom t h a t point. The cooler shrinkage t o which Mr. Nauaann referred is rather d i f f i c u l t t o get, other than in the laboratory. It is almost impoesible t o go i n t o any packer's cooler where it i s necessary t o go, i n order to secure nunbers, and be able t o g e t a hot weight and a cold weight. You c m always g e t the hot weight. I know of one that usee 2.5; and another one t h a t uses 2.13; and another one They have t h e i r own methods and reasons f o r using those figures, which I expect have been very c a r e f u l l y worked out. I believe eo f a r a8 we we concerned i n experimental work, w e w i l l have t o adopt a s p e c i f i c shrink figure, because as we all know, it w i l l be impossible t o get a c t u a l shrink on the carcasses when we a r e working in a commercial cooler. The s p e c i f i c shrink f i g u r e w i l l be one of t h e things that we w i l l have t o d e f i n i t e l y establish, if uniform r e s u l t s are t o be procured. Are there any other comments? MR. WADY: I wonder i f the commercial shrink f i g u r e s t h a t a commercial packer uses are b a e d on t h e i r experience. You have d i f f e r e n t shrinks i n d i f f e r e n t coolere. You a r e not suggesting t h a t t h e shrink I n t h e commercial coolers be standard, a r e you? CHAIRMAN MACKINTOSH: No, I am speaking purely of our experimental records. The f i g u r e s t h a t t h e packer uses a r e worked out according t o t h e i r s p e c i f i c environment, and each one, a13 I said, is ueually determined f o r t h e i r p a r t i c u l a r s i t u a t i o n. That i s why we have v a r i a t i o n between packers. MR. BUTLIB: I want t o raise a question about a couple of measurements. We have r e c e n t l y measured a few carcaeses, and t h e r e is a l i t t l e d i f f i c u l t y i n establishiag t h e l e n g t h of t h e hind leg, due t o just exactly what t h e high point i s when the shank i s removed, There l e even some v a r i a b i l i t y, depending on where the beef a c t u a l l y is considered. If you hang carcasses i n the manner t h a t is shown bere, you g e t a s t r a i g h t e r hind l e g than you do when it i s done i n the m m e r c i a l manner, t h a t is, between the tendons, out of t h e calf of t h e bock, and you g e t more tming and more pivoting on t h a t leg. The high point i n t h a t case it3 f a r t h e r back, toward the tendon, arid I 8m wondering exactly which you are using, whether you a r e usthe hlgh point of t h e bone t h a t you indicated, or eome other point.

10 98. MR. NAUMANN: I am glad you brought t h a t out, M r. Butler. M y suggestion concerning t h a t would be not t o take t h i s point a t the tendon. The point I am speaking about is t h e high point on t h i s p a r t i c ular bone, the f l a t bone. It i s taken on t h e inside of the leg a t t h i s point. Now, t h a t w a s not, I w i l l say, a t the high point, and I stand corrected. MR. m: I have another point t h a t I would l i k e t o r a i s e re measuring, I notice t h a t you said the center of the twelfth thoracic vertebra. As I follow the instructions f o r ribbing carcasses recommended by MI, we a r e supposed t o follow the twelfth r i b down the e n t i r e length, t h a t is, t h e posterior portion of the twelfth r i b down i t s e n t l r e length. I n doing so, we reach a point on the lower edge of the twelfth thoracic vertebra, and Got t o t h e seventh lombar, This makes a difference i n t h e r i b eye. If we a r e going t o be a t a l l we have a d i s t i n c t area of v a r i a b i l i t y i s across the r i b eye. If we are go* curate figures, I c e r t a i n l y think that eye measurement from t h e Duo sides, or l i t t l e more accurate i n ribbing down. accurate on the r i b eye, I believe there, depending on what the s l a n t t o measure down t o extremely a c it should be an average of t h e r i b we a m goin@; t o have t o be a, MR. "N: Ribbing w i l l influence the size of t h e r i b eye tremendously. I n mg experience, only as t o commercial coolers, I can see some merit i n following the twelfth r i b as suggested i n the BAI procedure. I n other words, burning the r i b, It is not a normal procedure in packing houses, because it ruins the appearance. It does not r u i n it, but it d e t r a c t s from the appearance of t h e r i b eye muscle. It makes it somewhat smaller. I believe they have worked tuward cutting d i r e c t l y between the two r i b s, and i n any event, they do not burn the t w e l f t h r i b. How we can standardize t h e r i b b i n g I do not know. The angle a t which the knife is held, whether it i s p a r a l l e l t o the f l o o r, or a t a l i t t l e angle, with t h e handle turned down toward the f l o o r, w i l l make q u i t e a l i t t l e difference i n t h e shape of t h i s eye muscle, and the a r e a of It, The knife should be held p a r a l l e l with the f l o o r. But t h a t is an individual error, an e r r o r of workmanship, t h a t we w i l l have t o overcome. I do not think we can completely eliminate it. I was r e f e r r i n g i n my measurements t o t h e commercially r i b b e d carcam. I know it differe i n some points, with Mr. Hankins, and with the group working with M r. Hankins, MR. H A " S : Please do not credit or charge t h i s cutting method t o the BAI. It was developed by a group of cooperators, much the same as we have i n t h i s room today, and we happen t o have used it and passed it on t o various people. Some f o l k s have come t o look upon it as the BAI method. It is not. There may be weaknesses i n it, and I expect t h a t there are. We a r e as anxious as you a r e t o have t h s mistakes eliminated, i f t h e r e a r e errors.

11 I a? I 3,, 99. MR. WILFORD: Does not t h e hanging of t h a t hind quarter between the tendons, where t h a t hook is now, a f f e c t the clrcwnference of t h a t round? MR. N: Yes. I believe the reaaon the packer hangs it nomaally from t h i s tendon is t o plump the round t o avoid a f l a t n e s s over the back of t h e round, which is r a t h e r comon when you hang them i n the hockjoint. That is a consideration, I might suggest since it is norm&, commercial procedure t o ha% the carcam i n t h e tendon, t h a t it be copied and adopted. But, it does vary the circumference of t h e round considerably. MR. IELLER: What s o r t of correlation i s there between these percentage yield of t h e various cuts, f o r meaeuremente anti t h e ELC~UBI instance, t h e rounddo you have measurements, o r a r e these measurements correlated with the yield of the round, and t h e yield of the l o i n, and so on? The only experience 1 have had is t h e c o r r e l a t i o n of t h e m various f a c t o r s with t h e grade and not.yield. 1 cannot answer t h a t, I do not know of any professional work t h a t has been done, MR. NAUMA. : I know there is room f o r work in that respect. I n other words, e l i k e a plump round. Do we we t a l k about t h e plumpnese of t h e round. W know t h a t plumpneas increases the y i e l d 6f the round? We associate it with t h e high yielding round. Do we know It? 1 do not think there is any concrete basis, or any experimental basis f o r t h a t asamption. CHAlRMAN MACHINTOSH: All of these criticiams and 8ugge8tiOnS a r e extremely valuable, and it i s t h e primary prlrpoee of t h i s Conference t o provide a n opportunity t o develop a g r e a t e r degree of standardization. I a m q u i t e sure that the discussion has indicated t h a t t h e r e i s need f o r standardization. I know t h a t there a r e a number here who have had experience i n making eome of these measurements and appreciate the variations i n measuring t h a t have been indicate&. I might sag, in our case, we have ueed the mid point of t h e j o i n t, ( t h a t is) t h e high point a t the middle of t h e Joint, r a t h e r than going up t o the extreme point, because it brings it more closely a t r i g h t anglee. Agaln, we axe introducing a n error, and I might sag, when we a r e working in poking plants, we have requested, a.nd have had,.100 percent cooperation from the ribber i n h i e endeavor t o keep h i s knife a t r i g h t angles all the way through, but even then t h e best r i b b e r s l i p s occasiona l l y, so we a r e goingl t o have som of those variables enter i n t o t h i s practice, The next number on t h e agenda is t h a t of t h e Physical, Chemical and Organoleptic Method8 of Crslrcass EvaLuatIon, by Mr, C. H. Adam of the University of Nebraaka. ###