Meat Standards Australia (MSA) is a new concept in grading beef It differs in several important ways from the traditional concepts of grading.  Firstly, MSA is focused on providing a guarantee of eating quality for the consumer.  To this end it has implemented a large consumer testing system, the results of which are used to determine if meat from a specific production system can be graded, and if so at what level.  Secondly, the pathways that are approved for MSA are based on controlling those factors that impact on meat quality from the total production system.  This contrasts to most other carcass grading schemes, which have simply relied on measuring a number of carcass traits at chiller assessment which has been shown to have only a poor relationship with eating quality.

Eating quality is a reflection of all the events that have occurred up until the point when the steak is eaten.  This includes the genetics, pre- and post-weaning treatment, pre-slaughter handling of the animal and post-slaughter treatment and processing of the carcass.  Failure of only one link in the whole chain could result in a poor-eating experience.  A term that is often used to describe the principles of the new grading scheme is PACCP This is a concept taken from the food safety sector and stands for Palatability Analysis of Critical Control Points.  PACCP means those points in the production system which have the largest effect on palatability are identified and carefully controlled so that it is possible to accurately predict the quality of the final product.  Via the literature and an ongoing research program the critical control points (CCP) that impact on eating quality have been identified and combined into pathways.

A major advantage of the MSA system is that it is possible to identify multiple pathways to achieve similar eating quality outcomes.  By having the price differential between the grades clearly identified, along with the production/processing pathways to achieve certain grades, producers and processors can cost options and decide if achieving a specified grade via a defined production system is economically viable.

MSA Pathways
In the beef production chain there are a number of practices that are critical to controlling meat quality in any beef production system.  These are referred to as the basic criteria and are common to all MSA pathways.  These basic criteria are aimed at reducing stress on the animal from the farm, through lairage to slaughter.  In addition, it is known that processing factors such as the rate of pH relative to temperature fall is important in determining meat quality.  Therefore, in addition to the basic criteria for producers, there are basic criteria for abattoirs in terms of meeting the pH/temperature window to avoid the problems of both heat and cold shortening

Specific pathways have been approved for a variety of production systems.  To get approval for a pathway, meat samples are collected and eaten by the consumer taste panel.  The taste panels are conducted using a rigorous design and protocol, and the results clearly place meat samples into a number of grades.  The pathways define components of genetics, growth pattern, post-slaughter and value-adding treatments that have been found to have a major influence on the eating quality of carcasses.

In terms of implications for the Northern Beef industry a high content of Bos Indicus has been found to have a detrimental effect on eating quality. Therefore under normal processing of carcasses Bos indicus  content was set as at a maximum of 25%.  However since the initial pathways were developed, subsequent research has shown that if the carcass is tender stretched, or if the cuts are aged for longer periods the Bos indicus  content of cattle submitted to MSA can be increased and still achieve the eating quality standards set down by the consumers. Research is under way  to extend the pathways to accommodate a greater range of Bos indicus content.  The other contentious issue of MSA is the weight adjusted for maturity (WAM) factor that needs to be greater than 0.6 kg/day.  Again, research is under way to examine alternatives to the WAM factor that will focus on achieving weight gain targets in specified sections of the production cycle. The CRC data base provides the ideal resource for resolving this question.

The Brisbane Pilot
The MSA carcass grading scheme has been trialed in Brisbane over the last 8 months. As part of the trial, records were kept of the sale of graded and ungraded meat in individual stores and food service outlets, so that the full impact of the grading scheme on the profitability of the beef industry could be evaluated.

The results of the pilot were very encouraging in that the consumers who were aware of the MSA scheme and had purchased MSA product, had an extremely high repurchase rate ( 86%). The high level of satisfaction with the MSA product was verified by the mystery shopping which showed that the number of failures in MSA product purchased over the counter was well below expectation. Another interesting result was that the purchasing pattern of customers buying MSA product did not appear to be influenced by $3.99 specials being run in the same stores. This suggests that MSA customers built up an allegiance to the product.

On the negative side, there were some concerns from the production sector with the increased costs of the MSA system not always being rewarded, particularly if compliance rates were not high.

A New Approach- A cuts based grading scheme
Recent results have shown that the variation between cuts within a carcase is of the order of 60 times more variable than between different carcasses for the same cut. It therefore follows that if the aim of the MSA is to guarantee the eating quality of a cut when cooked as recommended then a move towards a cuts based grading system rather then the present carcass based system is logical. Current research is examining how a cuts based grading system can be implemented. The initial results are encouraging, in that based on production, processing and cooking details it is possible to accurately predict the eating quality of cuts.
The big advantage of a cuts based system is that it not only improves the consistency of cuts being sold within a star/cooking category, but it also provides a mechanism to value add to the carcass. If the reason for paying a higher price for fillet than striploin is the way it eats, than it is logical for cuts such as oyster blade, cube roll, blade and sections of the rump that eat the same, to be sold at the same price. This has the potential to substantially raise the value of the carcass. Initial estimates suggest that the increase in gross retail value from a cuts based approach will be in the order of $300, from which the additional costs have to be subtracted. Even with extra capital equipment and increased boning charges this will leave a substantial net profit to be shared by participants in the production chain.

Conclusion
The MSA system provides a new approach to grading beef. The unique aspect of MSA is that it is underpinned by extensive consumer testing. The goal posts are clearly set on guaranteeing palatability to the consumer. The cuts based system is an exciting development which has the potential to provide a more consistent product to the consumer and to substantially value add to the carcass.