CONSUMER EVALUATION OF BEEF OF KNOWN CATEGORIES OF TENDERNESS

A study was conducted to determine consumer perceptions of beef top lo in steaks of known shear force and to evaluate how buying trends were modified by the tenderness and price variations of these steaks. Strip loins were cut into 2.54-cm-thick Steaks, and the center steak from e ach strip loin was used to determine Warner-Bratzler shear force. The remaining steaks were placed into one of the following shear force cat egories based on that shear force and color-coded accordingly: 1) 2.27 to 3.58 kg (Red); 2) 4.08 to 5.40 kg (White); and 3) 5.90 to 7.21 kg (Blue). Randomly recruited consumers were allowed to evaluate steaks a nd then purchase steaks based on their findings. A $1.10/kg price diff erence was placed between each category. Results of the analysis indic ated that consumers were able to differentiate between the three categ ories of tenderness (P <.05). In addition, consumers gave higher (P <. 05) juiciness and flavor ratings to Red steaks than to Blue steaks. Ov erall Satisfaction was higher (P <.05) for Red steaks than for the oth er two categories of steaks. The following percentages of steaks were purchased: 1) Red, 94.6%; 2) White, 3.6%; and 3) Blue, 1.8%. These res ults suggest that consumers could discern between categories of tender ness and were willing to pay a premium for improved tenderness.