For the first time in nearly 30 years it seems to be turning back the challenge from pork and poultry. A host of new products and the popularity of high-protein diets have been big boosters for beef. The only obstacle in way of even further boosts seems to be the occasional tough, chewy steak that turns consumers off and drives them back to the competition. Michael Bezner, who manages his family's 10,000-head feedlot near Texline, Texas, says demand has made fed cattle profitable since February. For a guy in my shoes, in his early thirties, being in a growing industry instead of a shrinking one is pretty fun to think about.
Consumers say tenderness is the number one criteria for an enjoyable beef-eating experience.
Only recently has technology become available that can be used in a commercial processing plant to predict tenderness. In blind taste tests, not all consumers can distinguish levels of tenderness. KSU economist Jim Mintert and Clay Center scientist Mohammad Koohmaraie have been the first to quantify the value of tenderness. They surveyed 313 customers in three different retail markets. Most ate ground beef 2.2 times a week at home.