Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
fed producers choose not to get their meat graded, and many producers explain this decision
on their websites.
Here is a look at the USDA grades. The three main grades of beef are Prime (considered the
best grade), Choice, and Select. There are also degrees of grades — high, medium, and low.
Medium grades are rarely included, and high and low grades are given most often.
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Prime:
Considered the best-quality meat. It has the most marbling and comes from anim-
als that are finished at younger ages. Prime cuts are the rarest cuts and are usually only
found at top-quality restaurants. These cuts are also the most expensive.
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Choice
: Usually considered a notch below prime and has less marbling. Choice cuts are
considered very good quality, but more affordable than prime cuts.
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Select
: This cut is leaner than choice or prime, which is common for grass-finished anim-
als.Eventhoughgrass-fedbeefoftengradeslowerthangrain-finishedmeat,theproducts
can be comparable in quality.
There are other grades — standard, commercial, utility, cutter, and canner — but meat of
these levels of quality are not sold retail. Lower grades are used in low quality products, such
as canned meats.
Know your cuts of meat
Customers can buy the whole animal, sides (half the animal cut lengthwise), or quarters. You
also can sell your animal on the hoof, which means you sell the animal or shares of the animal
when it is still alive. Beef from animals sold on the hoof is sold in bulk, usually in halves or
quarters. You also can sell quarters of the animal, such as a forequarter or a hindquarter.
Selling in quarters can be difficult because the best cuts come from the middle and back of the
animal and it can be hard to get rid of cuts that come only from the front of the animal.
Selling split sides is a way to sell a quarter of the animal and mix up the cuts — a split side is
half the meat from a side of beef including cuts from the front and back.
Not every beef animal is cut the same way. You need to be able to tell your butcher some ba-
sic things about the cuts you want. If you are unsure, the cutter will be able to offer advice and
suggestions. As you get used to the process, and as you get feedback from your customers,
you will start to get a feel for what customers want and what they do not. Individual custom-
ers also may want different things — some want a small number of thick steak cuts, others
