Abstract
This paper is not concerned with growth and development as such, but with the implications for future beef production of trends in market and consumer requirements.
To maintain the demand for meat against an increasing range of consistent , convenient and sometimes cheaper products, there appears to be an increasing need to market consumer cuts in a form which maximises convenience, minimises waste and ensures consistent textures, as well as providing value for money.
The meat industry now has the technology to make the most of the available meat to satisfy these requirements and to do so much more efficiently. This involves removing constraints which inhibit change and adopting a new and integrated approach to beef slaughte, dressing and meat preparation.
The producers task must be primarily to produce lean tender meat at the lowest possible cost. Growth studies suggest that efficient lean meat production will involve a variety of breeds and production systems and this will lead to variations in the weighty fatness and shape of cattle at slaughter. However, given a more flexible and innovative approach to processing and marketing, such variations should not present the industry with a serious problem.
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© 1978 Martinus Nijhoff - The Hague/Boston/London
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Cuthbertson, A., Harrington, G. (1978). Targets for Beef Production in Relation To Market and Consumer Requirements. In: De Boer, H., Martin, J. (eds) Patterns of Growth and Development in Cattle. Current Topics in Veterinary Medicine, vol 2. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-9756-1_38
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-9756-1_38
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