certified angus beef??

mmidlam · Nov 11, 2009

Who makes sure certified Angus beef is the real thing? Once the hide is off, they all look the same. Does the CAB group have people at the packers checking the beef?
I heard CAB has some requirements like the hide has to be 75% black, rib spread has to be a certain size and there is a limit to live weight

da-bees · Nov 11, 2009

I think CAB is a pattened name like Nolan Ryan's,Oscar Myer,Earl Cambell and such. They very well buy only angus but I dought it requires inspection outside normal USDA required for retail meat. It is good stuff what ever the case may be.

IaGary · Nov 11, 2009

What about the Amana Hams?

Amana farms no longer raises hogs. Amana meat markets do not process or smoke hams.

So what is or where does a Amana ham come from?

Gary

john in la · Nov 11, 2009

The thing I never could understand is the cow must be 51% black to qualify as certified angus.

Don't Angus cows come in RED also.

So that means a registered red angus would not qualify but some half breed that is black could.

Down right stupid.

Anonymous-0 · Nov 11, 2009

Just another advertising stunt between the golden arches and the Angus breeders Association or the like.

Anonymous-0 · Nov 11, 2009

I used to work in the packing house as a USDA meat grader. There are a couple of different procedures used to certify CAB product but the most common method is as follows: Carcasses from cattle that are at least 51% black are identifed with an "A" at the time of hide removal. This is done by a trained plant employee but monitored by a USDA grader. When a carcass with an "A" is graded it is also evaluated by the grader for the other CAB requirements- Modest amount of marbling, fine textured marbling, carcass conformation(no dairy characteristics), Yield grade, no dark cutting. If it meets all the requirement the grader certifies it is CAB and marks the carcass with a stamp. The plant then has to sort all the CAB carcasses and fabricate them together. USDA Meat Inspection is responsible to see that only CAB product goes in boxes labeled CAB.

fixerupper · Nov 11, 2009

Most of the people in the world are so far removed from agriculture you could tell them Angus is a breed of cat and they'll believe you. Jim

Bob · Nov 11, 2009

.
Black and Gus

mmidlam · Nov 12, 2009

Thanks for the reply. Only 51% black! I would think both black and belted Galloway would pass as CAB.They are smaller but really beefy looking. Do black Limosines and black Simmental pass?

colekicker · Nov 12, 2009

Eight carcass specifications were developed by CAB to ensure that every carcass earning the Certified Angus Beef ® brand offers consumers the same quality eating experience. To receive the brand cattle must first be at least 51% black-hided and meet these criteria:
-Neck hump of less than 2 inches
-“A” maturity (9-30 months)
-Modest or higher degree of marbling
-Medium or better marbling texture
-USDA Yield Grade (YG) 3.9 or leaner
-Moderately thick or thicker muscling
-No capillary ruptures
-No dark-cutting characteristics

So technically speaking, many breeds could fall under this definition.

Kruse · Nov 12, 2009

Yes, indeed.
There are several top steak houses in the Omaha and Kansas City area that serve......drum roll please........
Holstein.
No, they don't tell their customers that.

dieselpup · Nov 12, 2009

Holsteins make a good beef and marble well but they just take lots of feed to get there. I had some for supper last night. We always joke about marketing Certified Holstein Beef. But all jokes aside, in our area black cattle sell better.

Anonymous-0 · Nov 12, 2009

it's a joke, any black hided animal can go for certified angus, people suck it up and it sells more mickey d's a$$hole and eyeball burgers whereas certified hereford has to be a hereford or a black baldie, saying that I only raise blacks a few herefords and a cross of both.

Charles Santhuff · Nov 12, 2009

For PETEH. Isn't producers of other beef cattle being discriminated against by USDA meat inspectors who go to great lenghts to make sure CAB is the real thing. Shouldn't they do the same for othe breeds, such as herefords for example?

greygoat · Nov 12, 2009

At Norwalk Wisconsin a packing plant processes
Whole cow ground beef..100% of the cow is used
to make hamburger. I've always understood that it
went to fast food resturants. Used worn out milk
cows are all i've ever seen going in there, no
angus, but plenty of holstien black and white.

dhermesc · Nov 12, 2009

The thing to remember is the cattle used for McDonalds are the oldest skinniest cull cows they can find. McDonalds wants the "beef" to have as close to "0" fat as they can possibly get it. They then ADD the fat needed to make the burger "juicy". If they use beef with too much marbling its hard to add the correct amount of fat to make a decent burger without shrinking to much as it cooks.

Mike (WA) · Nov 12, 2009

I worked for a farm meat shop in the '60's- they raised Angus on the farm, but went to more and more holstein steers, because the meat was actually superior in flavor and tenderness, at least the way they finished them (lots of corn and barley).

petetx · Nov 12, 2009

mine are black limousin 100% black auctioeer hollars angus when they hit the auction ring.I'm not gonna explain it to em. tastes the same

Wesley Stephens · Nov 12, 2009

The Certified Angus brand is a clever marketing technique that works, but there are plenty of other good types of beef. I finish out beeves and sell the meat directly to the customer, and they all have been more than satisfied with the quality. I have had many different crosses of beef breeds and they all have been good. A friend of my brother finishes out Jersey steers and has a large following.

jhilyer · Nov 12, 2009

Why did Angus get the "reputation" to begin with? Probably only a marketing ploy.

My dad raised Herefords when I was a kid - man, nothing like Sunday beef roast. And those were culls - he sold the better ones!

I'm sure that there's city folk out there who think if it ain't Angus, it's no good!

Wesley Stephens · Nov 12, 2009

A professor I had in college told us the story of the angus label. He said that in the 70's the angus association decided to market beef from their breed as a distinct brand and they promoted it well. The consensus is that good quality angus beef is no better than good quality beef of another breed, but their marketing has been good and they make sure that only good quality meat gets marked with the label.

TerryB IL · Nov 12, 2009

CAB is a trade name. It only has to pass certain qualifications in the quality of the meat to be CAB. Any type of cattle can be CAB, doesn"t even have to be black.

PeteH · Nov 12, 2009

As long as the animal is 51% black and can meet the other requirements it can be CAB regardless of breed. Probably a brahma won"t make it because it has a hump. The live animal specification talks about "Angus influence".
I saw a report done by a company that does a lot of genetic testng on Angus. They purchased beef from stores some place in texas. They said as much as 50% of the beef did not have genes from Angus. The study was done several years ago and I"ve forgotten the details.

PeteH · Nov 12, 2009

If someone makes a claim as to breed USDA will require the plant to have a program similar to CAB to insure the product meets that claim. USDA then monitor the plant to see that they follow it. There are also Certified RED Angus and Certified Herford programs that works similar to the CAB program. In fact a black baldy could qualify for both CAB and Certified Herford. Also some genetic Red Angus are black and can qualify for CAB.(CAB is only Black Angus.)
There is a Truth in Labeling law which requires that a label on the box be true. USDA inspection is responsible for enforcing that law. The catch is that a box of meat could be sold to a store with no breed claim on the box. The store could then label the product for breed. Since it is at the retail level USDA no longer has juridiction on labeling. Only some local or state level regulatory agency such as public health can enforce labeling. The problem is most states and counties have no labeling laws or manpower to enforce labeling.

MirageFlatter · Nov 13, 2009

Some of what's been posted here about Certified Angus Beef is true and correct, some of it, not so much. If you want the facts, just do a Google search on specifications for Certified Angus Beef, you can learn all you want to, and then some. No, it is not just a marketing ploy, as less than 8% of beef slaughtered meets the strict quality specifications for the CAB brand label. And most all beef breed organizations are promoting a premium branded beef product, Certified Red Angus, Certified Hereford, and on, and on. What McDonalds is doing, is a marketing ploy, and in my opinion, is a disservice to the Angus breed. I tried one of their Angus burgers a couple of months ago, and thought it was the crappiest fast food burger I've ate in years. When I choose to eat at Mickey D's, I'll stick with the McDouble, the only decent value on the menu, at a dollar a pop. Certified Angus Beef has EARNED a reputation for being the best of the best, through their strict, consumer friendly, quality standards. Whether in the restaurant, or the grocery store, if you buy beef with the CAB label, you can be assured it will be very, very good. Enjoy!! :wink:

Anonymous-0 · Nov 14, 2009

If it brings in more dollars , the less said the better.

certified angus beef??

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