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Evaluating red meat yield in today’s beef industry

The past chair of the National Cattlemen’s Beff Association’s Federation of State Beef Councils says the current red meat yield equation is outdated. 

Dan Gattis, a Texas cattle producer, says it has been more than 60 years since the beef industry updated its methods for compensating producers for their products. “How much of a product are you actually producing when it ultimately goes to the feedlot and then to the packer,” he says.  “Right now, that’s a black box. The packer knows. I guarantee they know, but we don’t know.”

He tells Brownfield that advancements in genetics and production management have resulted in higher-quality beef, and producers would benefit from an update.  “Allowing producers to get paid better for what they are actually producing,” he says. “I think that’s important.”

Gattis says the cattle herd is at record low levels.  “But, we know that we’re producing more meat and more yield per carcass,” he says. “What is that amount that we’re doing as carcass weights increase? Is our red meat yield actually increasing, or is that a lot of that fat content and those other things that are trimmed?”

He says the Beef Checkoff is currently supporting research aimed at improving carcass yield assessments. Modern technologies and data analysis provide an opportunity to capture the absolute measurement of carcass composition and update the Yield Grade system.

AUDIO: Dan Gattis, NCBA’s Federation of State Beef Councils