Boletim de Indústria Animal (Jul 2015)

Classification and grading of beef carcasses from the western region of Bahia during two seasons of the year

  • Danilo Gusmão de Quadros,
  • Bruno Rodrigues Paes,
  • Guilherme Augusto Vieira,
  • Alexandro Pereira Andrade,
  • Alisson Magalhães Miranda,
  • Jorge Aurélio Macedo Araújo,
  • Paulo Sérgio de Azevedo

DOI
https://doi.org/10.17523/bia.v72n2p102
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 72, no. 2
pp. 102 – 110

Abstract

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The final result of beef cattle production systems is verified in carcasses. However, in Brazil the cold storage facility rarely separates the products according to quality, especially in the northeastern region of the country. The objective of this study was to evaluate beef carcasses from the western region of Bahia during two seasons (rainy and dry) of the year according to the National Beef Carcass Grading System (Sistema Nacional de Tipificação de Carcaças Bovinas - SNTCB). The evaluations were performed at a cold storage facility in Barreiras, Bahia, which is monitored by the Federal Inspections Service (Serviço de Inspeção Federal - SIF). A total of 1,000 carcasses, half during the dry season (August) and the other half during the rainy season (December), were sampled. Descriptive statistics was used for data analysis and the mean and standard error of each response variable were obtained. The season of the year did not influence the sex of the animals slaughtered, with a balance between intact males (44%) and females (42%) and little participation of castrated males (14%). The degree of maturity of the slaughtered animals was high, with about 70% of the animals possessing more than four permanent incisors. The carcasses varied in terms of finishing from scores 2 to 4; 32% had a low fat cover (score ≤ 2) in the dry season and 52% in the rainy season. Prolonged drought affected the results. The conformation data indicated more than 90% of the carcasses to be rectilinear, subconvex and convex and most of them weighed less than 240 kg, the minimum weight recommended by cold storage facilities. Sixty-four percent of the carcass analyzed were graded as letter “I”, the penultimate score of the official system (B-R-A-S-I-L). Regardless of the season of the year, cattle slaughtered in the western region of Bahia resulted in low-quality carcasses due to the high degree of maturity, inadequate conformation and finishing, and low weight of the animals. Genetic improvement and adequate management are necessary to produce high-quality carcasses.

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