Effect of feeding level, grazing and finishing on growth and carcass quality of young Friesian bulls

Forty-one autumn-born Friesian bull calves were allocated to extensive (E) and intensive (I) production systems. The extensive system included 21 loos e-housed animals fed a roughage-based diet the first winter, allowing a dai ly gain of 664 g, followed by a 5-month grazing period. Ten of these animal s were slaughtered directly from pasture (live weight similar to 360 kg), a nd the remaining II animals after a further 10-week finishing period with c oncentrates in tie-stalls (live weight similar to 460 kg). In the intensive system, animals were housed in tie-stalls, offered concentrates ad libitum , and slaughtered at about 360 kg (n = 11) and 460 kg (n = 9) live weight. Overall, daily gain of E-bulls was 926 g compared with 1478 g for the I-bul ls (p < 0.001). At pasture, E-bulls gained 1108 g/day. Compared with I-bull s of similar live weights, the E-bulls slaughtered directly from pasture ha d a lower dressing percentage (p < 0.05), a higher lean content (p < 0.05), a much lower fat content (p < 0.05) and darker meat colour (p < 0.05). Fin ishing-fed E-bulls showed no sign of compensatory gain after the grazing pe riod. The finishing period improved the carcass quality of E-bulls, but the E-bulls were leaner (p < 0.05) and had a darker meat colour (p < 0.05) tha n the I-bulls of similar live weight (460 kg). It is concluded that a finis hing period of minimum 10 weeks following the grazing period is necessary t o obtain a satisfactory carcass quality of the extensively produced young b ulls.