Factors Influencing Beef Tenderness1

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Abstract
Carcasses from 66 cattle 12, 24 and 60 months of age which differed in ante-mortem stress treatment, method of aging and grade were used to investigate differences in tenderness. Tenderness was evaluated at various times during aging by taste panel, chemical and mechanical methods. Tenderness improved during aging, but no differences were obtained between carcasses aged at high and low temperatures for 3 and 15 days, respectively. Steaks from non-stressed steers were significantly more tender than those from stressed steers during the early stages of aging. However, tenderness was similar for steaks from the stressed and non-stressed cattle at the termination of the aging period. The meat from younger cattle was significantly more tender than from older cattle. Panel tenderness values were significantly correlated with Warner-Bratzler shear values, but not with the hydroxyproline content of beef muscle. Significant correlations were also obtained between the conventional Warner-Bratzler shear and a modified “cooked core” shear method.