Carcass dissection and commercial meat yield in Piemontese and Belgian Blue double-muscled young bulls

Abstract

To study the differences in meat yield in hypertrophied cattle, a commercial dissection trial was carried out on 48 carcasses obtained from 24 Piemontese (P: 12 reared with a restricted feeding, P-R, and 12 fed ad libitum, P-L), and 24 Belgian Blue (B: 12 reared with a restricted feeding, BB-R, and 12 fed ad libitum, BB-L) young bulls. The animals were reared under the same environmental condition and slaughtered at the same age and fattening degree. During commercial dissection, the weights of the retail cuts were recorded. Three fore-quarter meat cuts were heavier in P than in BB, while nine meat cuts (two from fore-quarter and seven from hind-quarter), hind-quarter meat and prime quality meat were heavier in BB than in P. Fat weight was higher in BB than in P, whereas meat production as a percentage of carcass side weight was higher in P than in BB. Only one hind-quarter meat cut was heavier in the ad libitum (L) than in the restricted (R) group, whereas meat yield was higher in R than in L. In comparing the meat yield in carcass sides of P-R, P-L, BB-R and BB-L fed young bulls, four meat cuts (one from fore-quarter and three from hind-quarter), hind-quarter, prime quality and 3rd quality meat were heavier in BB-L (P ≤ 0.05), while one shoulder cut and fore-quarter were heavier in P-R group.