National Beef Quality Audit Reveals Insights into US Beef Industry

Every five years, experts team up to examine the US beef industry in the National Beef Quality Audit. They talk to everyone involved, from farmers to retailers, and check cattle in major processing plants. This big checkup gives us a detailed look at how things are going in the beef world.

Here's a peek at what the 2022 audit found:

For Fed Steers and Heifers (Beef Cattle Raised for Meat):

• Fancy Beef Programs are Popular: Special beef programs that promise top-notch meat are catching on.
• Food Safety is a Big Deal: Companies want to make sure their food is safe and high quality.
• Tracking Meat Back to the Farm: Many folks want a better way to trace where their meat comes from.
• Meat Needs to be Uniform: People like their meat to be a consistent size and weight.
• Great American Beef: Beef made in the USA is doing great both here and abroad. People love our high-quality beef.
• Good Meat Starts with Good Genes: The better the cattle's genes, the tastier the meat.

For Cows and Bulls:

• Cows and Bulls Look Better: The image of Market Cows and Bulls has improved over the past five years.
• Animal Care is Improving: Farmers are taking better care of their animals, but they still need to learn more about things like when to cull cattle. • A Surprise Problem: Some cows have birdshot in them, which is not good for animal handling.

Apart from interviews, experts also checked cattle and meat in processing plants. Here are some things they noticed about the beef we eat:

• Better Quality: Beef has more marbling (those tasty bits of fat), and more meat is Prime or Choice quality.
• Beef is Heavier: Cattle are heavier, with more fat and muscle.
• Lots of Fat Cattle: There are more cattle with thick fat and higher weights.
• Fancy Tags: We're using electronic tags more often.
• Black Cattle are In: Black-hided cattle are in fashion, while Holstein-pattern cattle are less common.
• Less Dairy Cattle: We see fewer dairy cattle in meat processing, compared to 2016.

While the 2022 National Beef Quality Audit has good news about food safety and beef quality, there's still work to do. We can keep cattle healthier, make sure there's nothing strange in our beef, and make the beef production process even better for the environment.

Photo Credit: gettyimages-erdinhasdemir