Carcass

AMERICAN ANGUS ASSOCIATION - THE BUSINESS BREED

Carcass

Learn more about carcass evaluation and data as part of the National Cattle Evaluation.

Weekly genomic-enhanced carcass EPDs are calculated from an integrated analysis of the Beef Improvement Records carcass, ultrasound, growth (weaning weight), and genomic profile databases. The weekly genetic evaluations result in a single EPD for carcass weight, marbling score, ribeye area, and fat thickness. The units of measure for EPDs are in carcass trait format – marbling score, carcass weight in pounds, carcass ribeye in square inches, and carcass fat thickness in inches. Growth (weaning weight), carcass, genomic and pedigree databases are simultaneously combined into one set of genomic-enhanced carcass EPDs for Angus breeding programs. Every Friday morning, the genomic-enhanced NCE EPDs are available at www.angus.org. To learn more about genomic-enhanced EPDs, click here.

The carcass and ultrasound data contributing to the evaluation are described in Table 1 and Table 2 with average adjusted measurements.

Ultrasound images incorporated into the carcass EPDs were collected by field technicians certified by the Ultrasound Guidelines Council (UGC). The images were interpreted through one of the American Angus Association's authorized ultrasound processing labs by UGC-certified lab technicians.

Table 1: Angus phenotypic averages of steer and heifer carcasses

	330 < Age < 480		481 < Age < 799
Heifers:	Avg	SD¹	Avg	SD¹
Avg. age at harvest, days	437	30	563	65
Adj.²carcass wt., lb.	731	93	712	105
Adj. fat thickness, in.	.63	.19	.57	.20
Adj. ribeye area, sq. in.	12.30	1.46	12.32	1.61
Adj. marbling score	6.93	1.37	6.71	1.45
No. of heifers	6,843		9,188

Steers:
Avg. age at harvest, days	438	26	527	46
Adj. carcass wt., lb.	811	88	791	108
Adj. fat thickness, in.	.58	.18	.56	.19
Adj. ribeye area, sq. in.	12.81	1.39	12.80	1.56
Adj. marbling score	6.26	1.12	6.13	1.32
No. of steers	85,277		34,691

¹SD = standard deviation

²Carcasses were adjusted to 480 days of age at harvest

IMPORTANT NOTE

As a review, the scoring system for marbling and its relationship to the USDA Quality Grading System is defined in Table 3.

For a carcass to meet Certified Angus Beef (CAB) standards, it must have a Modest ( average Choice) or higher marbling degree, be of "A" maturity (the most youthful classification for beef), 10 to 16 square inch ribeye, less than one inch fat thickness, less than 1,100 pound hot carcass weight and have a fine to medium marbling texture.

For more details, visit https://www.cabcattle.com.

Table 2: Yearling Angus live-animal and ultrasound measures

	Bulls		Heifers		Steers
Trait	Avg	SD¹	Avg	SD¹	Avg	SD¹
Age, days	371	26	389	30	402	38
Gain, lbs/day	2.91	0.70	1.51	0.52	2.81	0.73
Adj. scan weight, lb.	1122	142	868	114	1104	168
Adj. %IMF, %	3.83	1.14	4.87	1.44	4.98	1.44
Adj. ribeye area, sq. in.	12.65	1.90	9.80	1.74	12.34	2.28
Adj. 12-13th rib fat thickness, in.	.28	.10	.26	.11	.40	.16
Adj. rump fat thickness, in.	.30	.11	.30	.12	.41	.15
No. of Animals	1,396,781		897,286		14,363

¹SD = standard deviation

Table 3: USDA quality grading system and marbling score

Quality Grade	Amount of Marbling	Numerical Score
Prime +	Abundant	10.0 - 10.9
Prime	Moderately abundant	9.0 - 9.9
Prime -	Slightly abundant	8.0 - 8.9
Choice +	Moderate	7.0 - 7.9
Choice	Modest	6.0 - 6.9
Choice -	Small	5.0 - 5.9
Select	Slight	4.0 - 4.9
Standard	Traces	3.0 - 3.9
Standard	Practically devoid	2.0 - 2.9
Utility	Devoid	1.0 - 1.9

AMERICAN ANGUS ASSOCIATION - THE BUSINESS BREED

Carcass

Learn more about carcass evaluation and data as part of the National Cattle Evaluation.

Table 1: Angus phenotypic averages of steer and heifer carcasses

IMPORTANT NOTE

Table 2: Yearling Angus live-animal and ultrasound measures

Table 3: USDA quality grading system and marbling score

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