National Beef Quality Audit-2022: Harvest-floor assessments of hide defects, carcass defects, and offal condemnations that affect value of carcasses and by-products from market cows and bulls.

The National Beef Quality Audit ()-2022 serves as a benchmark of the current market cow and bull sectors of the U.S. beef industry and allows comparison to previous audits as a method of monitoring industry progress.

National Beef Quality Audit-2022: in-plant assessments of quality and yield determining carcass characteristics of fed steers and heifers.

The National Beef Quality Audit - 2022 serves as a benchmark of the current fed steer and heifer population of the U.S. beef industry and allows comparison to previous audits as a method of monitoring industry progress.

National Beef Quality Audit-2022: Transportation, mobility, live cattle, and hide assessments to determine producer-related defects that affect animal welfare and the value of market cows and bulls at processing facilities.

The National Beef Quality Audit (NBQA)-2022 serves as a benchmark of the current market cow and bull sectors of the U.S. beef industry and allows comparison to previous audits as a method of monitoring industry progress.

National Beef Quality Audit-2022 Phase 1: face-to-face and digital interviews.

The National Beef Quality Audit () has been conducted regularly since 1991 to assess and benchmark quality in the U.S. beef industry, with the most recent iteration conducted in 2022.

Quantification of ractopamine residues on and in beef digestive tract tissues.

Ractopamine hydrochloride is a commercial beta-adrenergic agonist commonly used as a dietary supplement in cattle production for improved feed efficiency and growth promotion. Currently, regulatory target tissues (as approved in the New Animal Drug Application with Food and Drug Administration) for ractopamine residue testing are muscle and liver. However, other tissues have recently been subjected to testing in some export markets for U.

Mobility Scoring of Finished Cattle.

Lameness is among the most important welfare and production issues affecting dairy cattle. Recently, it has received significant research emphasis. Certain events in 2013 within the cattle industry heightened the focus on mobility issues in finished cattle.

Effects of dietary ractopamine hydrochloride and zilpaterol hydrochloride supplementation on performance, carcass traits, and carcass cutability in beef steers.

British × Continental steers (initial BW = 484.6 kg) were fed at a commercial feed yard to evaluate the effects of β-agonists on live performance, carcass characteristics, and carcass subprimal yield. Weights and ultrasonic measurements were used to allocate steers to pens (n = 40) divided equally into 4 blocks, with 2 treatment replicates per block.

Effects of ractopamine hydrochloride and zilpaterol hydrochloride supplementation on carcass cutability of calf-fed Holstein steers.

Effects of ractopamine hydrochloride (RH) and zilpaterol hydrochloride (ZH) on saleable yield of carcass sides from calf-fed Holstein steers were evaluated using steers implanted with a progesterone (100 mg) plus estradiol benzoate (10 mg) implant followed by a terminal trenbolone acetate (200 mg) plus estradiol (40 mg) implant. Steers were blocked by weight into pens (n = 32) randomly assigned to one of four treatments: control, RH fed at 300 mg•steer(-1)/d(-1) (RH 300) or RH fed at 400 mg•steer(-1)/d(-1) (RH 400) the final 31 d of finishing, and ZH fed at 60 to 90 mg•steer(-1)/d(-1) (7.56 g/ton on a 100% DM basis) for 21 d with a 5 d withdrawal before harvest.

Effects of ractopamine hydrochloride and zilpaterol hydrochloride supplementation on longissimus muscle shear force and sensory attributes of calf-fed Holstein steers.

The effect of ractopamine hydrochloride (RH) and zilpaterol hydrochloride (ZH) on slice shear force (SSF) and sensory characteristics of beef from calf-fed Holstein steers was evaluated. All steers were implanted with a progesterone (100 mg) plus estradiol benzoate (10 mg) implant followed by a terminal trenbolone acetate (200 mg) plus estradiol (40 mg) implant. Steers were blocked by weight into pens (n = 32) randomly assigned to 1 of 4 treatments: control, RH fed at 300 mg·steer(-1)·d(-1) (RH 300) or RH fed at 400 mg·steer(-1)·d(-1)(RH 400) for the final 31 d of finishing, or ZH fed at 6.

North American Beef Tenderness Survey 2011-2012: benchmarking tenderness and sample shipping procedures.

Fifty-four stores in 30 U.S. cities were sampled from June 2011 through May 2012 to benchmark beef tenderness at retail, as assessed by Warner-Bratzler shear force (WBSF).

Effects of ractopamine hydrochloride and zilpaterol hydrochloride supplementation on longissimus muscle shear force and sensory attributes of beef steers.

Effect of ractopamine hydrochloride (RH) and zilpaterol hydrochloride (ZH) on LM shear force and sensory attributes was determined using pens (n = 40) British × Continental crossbred steers randomly allocated to one of the following treatments: control; RH fed at 200 (RH 200) or 300 mg • steer(-1) • d(-1) (RH 300), or 400 mg • steer(-1) • d(-1) (RH 400) top-dressed for the final 30 d of feeding; or ZH fed at 7.5 mg/kg, beginning 23 d before slaughter with a 3-d withdrawal. Two replicates (pens) per treatment were represented in four blocks.

Effects of cooking methods and chemical tenderizers on survival of Escherichia coli O157:H7 in ground beef patties.

This study evaluated chemical tenderizers and cooking methods to inactivate Escherichia coli O157:H7 in ground beef patties (model system for non-intact beef). Ground beef was inoculated with E. coli O157:H7 and mixed with (i) nothing (control), (ii) calcium chloride (CC) and flavoring agents (FA), (iii) CC, FA, and acetic acid (AA), (iv) sodium chloride (SC), sodium tripolyphosphate (ST), and potassium lactate (PL), and (v) the combination of SC, ST, PL, and AA.

Tracking the sources of salmonella in ground beef produced from nonfed cattle.

The objective of this study was to determine the source(s) of Salmonella contamination in ground beef. One hundred dairy cows were harvested in a U.S.

Effect of ractopamine hydrochloride (Optaflexx) dose on live animal performance, carcass characteristics and tenderness in early weaned beef steers.

Study objectives were to evaluate ractopamine hydrochloride's (RAC) effect on performance, carcass characteristics, and tenderness of early weaned beef steers. Steers were assigned to a control diet (0 mg RAC·steer⁻¹·d⁻¹), 200 mg RAC mg·steer⁻¹·d⁻¹, or 300 mg RAC·steer⁻¹·d⁻¹. Steers fed 200 and 300 mg RAC·steer⁻¹·d⁻¹ gained 14.

Transfer, attachment, and formation of biofilms by Escherichia coli O157:H7 on meat-contact surface materials.

Unlabelled: Studies examined the effects of meat-contact material types, inoculation substrate, presence of air at the liquid-solid surface interface during incubation, and incubation substrate on the attachment/transfer and subsequent biofilm formation by Escherichia coli O157:H7 on beef carcass fabrication surface materials. Materials studied as 2 × 5 cm coupons included stainless steel, acetal, polypropylene, and high-density polyethylene. A 6-strain rifampicin-resistant E.

Probabilistic models for the prediction of target growth interfaces of Listeria monocytogenes on ham and turkey breast products.

Unlabelled: This study developed growth/no growth models for predicting growth boundaries of Listeria monocytogenes on ready-to-eat cured ham and uncured turkey breast slices as a function of lactic acid concentration (0% to 4%), dipping time (0 to 4 min), and storage temperature (4 to 10 °C). A 10-strain composite of L. monocytogenes was inoculated (2 to 3 log CFU/cm²) on slices, followed by dipping into lactic acid and storage in vacuum packages for up to 30 d.

Reduction of Listeria monocytogenes on frankfurters treated with lactic acid solutions of various temperatures.

United States regulations require ready-to-eat meat and poultry processors to control Listeria monocytogenes using interventions which may include antimicrobials that reduce post-processing contamination by at least 1 log-cycle; if the treatment achieves > or = 2 log reductions, the plant is subject to less frequent microbial testing. Lactic acid (LA) may be useful as a post-lethality intervention and its antimicrobial properties may increase with temperature of application. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of LA solution concentration and temperature on L.

Establishing an appropriate mode of comparison for measuring the performance of marbling score output from video image analysis beef carcass grading systems.

A beef carcass instrument grading system that improves accuracy and consistency of marbling score (MS) evaluation would have the potential to advance value-based marketing efforts and reduce disparity in quality grading among USDA graders, shifts, and plants. The objectives of this study were to use output data from the Video Image Analysis-Computer Vision System (VIA-CVS, Research Management Systems Inc., Fort Collins, CO) to develop an appropriate method by which performance of video image analysis MS output could be evaluated for accuracy, precision, and repeatability for purposes of seeking official USDA approval for using an instrument in commerce to augment assessment of quality grade, and to use the developed standards to gain approval for VIA-CVS to assist USDA personnel in assigning official beef carcass MS.

Fate of Listeria monocytogenes during freezing, thawing and home storage of frankfurters.

Little information is available regarding the fate of Listeria monocytogenes during freezing, thawing and home storage of frankfurters even though recent surveys show that consumers regularly store unopened packages in home freezers. This study examined the effects of antimicrobials, refrigerated storage, freezing, thawing method, and post-thawing storage (7 degrees C) on L. monocytogenes on frankfurters.

Microwave oven heating for inactivation of Listeria monocytogenes on frankfurters before consumption.

Microwave oven heating was evaluated for inactivation of Listeria monocytogenes on inoculated and stored frankfurters. Frankfurters formulated without/with 1.5% potassium lactate and 0.

Associations between portion size acceptability of beef cuts and ribeye area of beef carcasses.

Carcasses that do not conform to mainstream specifications (i.e., those with nonconforming ribeye area) may not achieve their full potential value.

Effect of tenderizers combined with organic acids on Escherichia coli O157:H7 thermal resistance in non-intact beef.

Non-intact beef products include beef cuts that have been ground, mechanically tenderized, restructured, or have been injected with solutions to enhance tenderness and/or flavor. This study examined the effects of tenderizing salts and organic acids on thermal inactivation of Escherichia coli O157:H7 in a ground beef model system simulating non-intact beef products. Ground beef (95% lean; 700 g batches) was mixed (2 min) with nothing (C) or solutions (22 ml) of water (WA), calcium ascorbate (CaA, 0.

Effect of meat binding formulations on thermal inactivation of Escherichia coli O157:H7 internalized in beef.

This study evaluated the effects of meat binding or restructuring formulations, including salt/phosphate, algin/calcium, ActivaRM, and Fibrimex, with or without 0.27% (wt/wt) lactic acid, on thermal inactivation of internalized Escherichia coli O157:H7 in ground beef, serving as a model system for restructured products. Ground beef batches (700 g; approximately 5% fat) were mechanically mixed with a 5-strain composite of E.

Alkaline hydrolysis of mouse-adapted scrapie for inactivation and disposal of prion-positive material.

Prion diseases such as bovine spongiform encephalopathy, chronic wasting disease, and scrapie pose serious risks to human and animal health due to a host of disease-specific factors, including the resistance of infectious prions (PrP(Sc)) to natural degradation and to most commercial inactivation procedures. In an attempt to address this concern, a mouse model was used to compare the efficacy of an alkaline hydrolysis process with a simulated continuous-flow rendering treatment for disposal of PrP(Sc)-infected biological material. Female C57/BL6 mice (N = 120) were randomly divided into 4 treatment groups (n = 30), and each mouse was injected intraperitoneally with their designated treatment inoculum.