MSU Dutson Tenderness Data

Excerpts from a letter to Dr. D. Berndt, USDA

From Thayne Dutson, Chairman of Meat Science Department, Michigan State University

July 28, 1987

Dear Dr. Berndt:

Attached is the summary report for the data we have collected to date on the [rinse & chill] beef project.

The attached data which includes tests conducted at the Michigan State University Meat Laboratory and in-plant tests is in general agreement and shows the following:

In-plant tests show that there is a significant increase in tenderness (improvement of 25% for cows and 12% for fat cattle as shown in tables 1 and 2) due to the [rinse & chill] process (statistical probability for cows is P <0.001 and P <0.002 for fat cattle) as shown in tables 1 and 2. Data collected on fat cattle at Michigan State University are in agreement with the in-plant tests (8% improvement for loin at 7 days and 7% for chuck at 7 days). The tenderness differences are not as great as for in-plant tests on cows, but are in the same range as for in-plant tests on fat cattle.

I feel that our data clearly shows that:

The process effectively tenderizes beef (significance level of at least P <0.002).

In addition, we have determined that the [rinse & chill] process has the ability to reduce the temperature of the carcass approximately 10 degrees F as compared to controls which could have an effect on bacterial growth.

Sincerely,

Thayne R. Dutson, Chairperson

Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition

Michigan State University

East Lansing, Michigan 48824

Table 1: Comparison of Mean Shear Force (Tenderness) Values for Loin Steaks from 50 Control and 50 [Rinse & Chill] Cows

*Significance of difference by T-Test analysis is P <0.001.
The individual data and analysis printout for cow shear values are presented in Appendix C.

Table 2: Comparison of Mean Shear Force (Tenderness) Values for Loin Steaks from 48 Control and 48 [Rinse & Chill] Fat Cattle

*Significance of difference by T-Test analysis is P <0.002.
The individual data and analysis printout for fat cattle shear values are presented in Appendix D.

Appendix C

Individual Data and Analysis for Sheer Force Values From Loin Steaks of 50 Control and 50 [Rinse & Chill] Cows

Data presented in this appendix indicates that there is a significant difference in tenderness of cows that have been [processed via the rinse & chill technology]. This improvement in tenderness is approximately 25%. In addition, the variation in tenderness is less for treated animals than for control animals with standard deviations fo 2.42 and 1.25 for control and treated carcasses respectively. This is also evident in comparing the individual values for control and treated animals with the toughest two animals in the control group having sheer force values of 10.07 and 16.32, whereas the toughest animals within the treated group had sheer force values of 11.34 and 10.60. Therefore the data indicates that the [rinse & chill ] treatment not only improves the overall tenderness, but reduces the number of animals which would have very undesirable tenderness ratings.

Appendix D

Individual Data and Analysis for Sheer Force Values From Loin Steaks of 48 Control and 48 [Rinse & Chill] Fat Cattle

The data presented in this appendix indicates that in addition to a significant improvement in tenderness (sheer force values) for animals treated with the [rinse & chill] process, the variation in tenderness is also reduced by the treatment. This can be seen by comparing the standard deviation of control fat carcasses (2.28) to the standard deviation for treated fat carcasses (1.72). In addition, by comparing the maximum and minimum values, it can be determined that there is more reduction in the sheer force value (improvement in tenderness) of the very tough animals than there is a reduction in the sheer force values of the more tender animals (maximum values are 17.25 and 14.95 for control and treated carcasses respectively, whereas minimum values are 6.98 and 5.34 for control and treated carcasses respectively). This is also evident in comparing the individual values for control and treated animals with the toughest two animals in the control group having sheer force values of 10.07 and 16.32, whereas the toughest animals within the treated group had sheer force values of 11.34 and 10.60. Therefore the data indicates that the [rinse & chill ] treatment not only improves the overall tenderness, but reduces the number of animals which would have very undesirable tenderness ratings.

MPSC makes no USDA claims in relation to any of the incidental benefits associated with Rinse & Chill technology.