Assessment of breed type and ageing time effects on beef meat quality using two different texture devices

Forty-two male yearlings were used to assess the influence of breed type an d ageing time on beef texture. Samples of the M. longissimus dor si of four breed types [double muscled (DM), dual purpose (Brown Swiss, BS), fast gro wth (FG) and unimproved type (UT)] were aged for 1, 3, 7, 10, 14 or 21 days at 4 degrees C and frozen at -18 degrees C until analysed. Cooked samples (to end-point of 70 degrees C) were assessed using a Warner-Bratzler (WB) d evice. Raw samples were assessed using a compression device in which transv erse elongation was prevented. There were no Significant differences in WE values of cooked meat due to breed type, but ageing had a significant (P < 0.05) on maximum load. Ageing, but not breed type, had a significant effect on the compression values of raw meat at low compression rates (P < 0.001) . Compression values, of raw samples, at 80% compression differed significa ntly (P < 0.001) between breed types, but were not affected by ageing. Comp ression values of raw samples, at 80% compression, were affected by breed t ype, probably because of genotype differences in the contribution of connec tive tissue. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. Ail rights reserved.