Nothing but the best

[greybeard]

I started this thread to bring some debate to statements like “I have no doubt that once the Asian market got a taste of our barley fed products again, they'd desert the grass fed market in a heartbeat. At least those that could afford to do so. “
I respect Rod’s opinions and he brings a lot to this forum, but I think you can find producers in any major beef producing country in the world that are justifiably proud of their own product. We tend to generalize too often. I do it myself. But I have also learned in my limited travels that South America can serve up a very tasty piece of beef.
When I eat out I like to order beef but often don’t because I have lost faith in the quality of product being supplied to food service. Most seem to be willing to compromise quality for price. That includes the quality of people cooking and serving. I believe most of the people cooking in our local restaurants have never had a good steak.
I enjoyed a holiday in Argentina last winter. Naturally I was trying to learn as much about their beef business as a simple tourist can in a short time. I guess I have to say it scared me more than a little. My most important observation was they love their beef. Their consumption is almost double ours per person. I believe that in a large part that is due to the fact they serve a more predictable, well prepared product.
One other big problem for us will be currency valuation. Prior to 2002 they were pegged at par with the greenback. They now trade at less than 35 cents. We are now around 94 cents up from as low as 62 cents.
I look forward to some replies. Maybe someone from R-CALF can come on and point out how dirty and diseased they are.

[DiamondSCattleCo]

<chuckle> Ya went and deflated my Canuck Beef Ego now.

Actually, the my statement wasn't so much based on pride of our grain fed beef, but rather from my own understanding of what Asians enjoy for beef.

Back quite a few years, my uncle made a large chunk of money in the Japanese beef market. His buyers demanded way overfat, barley fed Holstein steer meat. These animals were fed almost pure barley and had god only knows how much fat on them, but the Japanese lapped these things up as a delicacy. He simply couldn't keep up with demand.

More currently, having done some reading on the Asian marketplace, the local high selling beef is still grain fed, however its also extremely expensive for most of these Asian countries to do grain feeding on a large scale. They simply lack the natural resources to do it.

Enter Canada. Economically speaking, I don't believe there is a cheaper place in the world to grain feed beef on a large scale. At least not export viable beef. There are other areas of the world that can feed grain cheaper than we can. The Ukraine sprouts to mind. However, they lack the necessary infrastructure to export beef on a grand scale.

As well, I recall reading some news stories about how difficult it was for the large packers to change peoples tastes in beef when BSE effectively slammed the door shut on Canadian and US beef in Asia. Don't get me wrong, I know grass fed beef can be tasty. I currently have one in my freezer. But for my tastes, nothing can beat a barley fed critter.

So my statement was really just trying to connect the dots in a logical fashion. Asians like grain fed beef. We can do it cheaper here than almost anywhere else in the world. Grass fed beef is a relatively new thing for them, and acceptance was not universal. Therefore, I believe if we can get our foot in the door again with barley fed beef, we'd yank back alot of the sales that we lost in the post-BSE years.

Rod

[grassfarmer]

Good points greybeard, Argentina has long held the reputation of quality beef production. I know looking back in history when the UK and Scotland in particular looked to rebuild their herds after WW2 the old guys often cited Argentina as a country that had great herds and great beef. Also a real knowledge of cooking beef which few in north America have in my opinion. This two minute scorch cooking isn't my idea of making a fine steak eating experience.

[Willowcreek]

How many of you listened to Lee Leachmans internet discussion with the Argentine and Brazillian producers...

While much of the Brazillian beef does not fit into what we are used to eating-- Argentina already produces top quality beef- predominately of English origin cattle (Angus and Hereford)-- but mostly grass finished as of now...But with the expansion of the multinationals they are using Argentinas long growing season areas- and moderate temperatures to expand the grain production and feedlot capability...

And with the USDA changing all the rules for FMD cattle especially for Tyson- Argentine beef will be entering the US and Canada by next year, if not sooner..

http://ranchers.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=19410&highlight=leachman

[Willowcreek]

Interesting article that was posted on ranchers.net about a study in meat differences.....

---------------------------------

Editor: Dr. Steve Hammack, Professor and Extension Beef Cattle Specialist Emeritus

December 2005

This newsletter is published by Texas Cooperative Extension - Animal Science. Media, feel free to use this information as needed and cite TAMU Beef Cattle Browsing Newsletter, Dr. Steve Hammack.



WHICH BEEF IS BEST - U. S., CANADIAN, OR AUSTRALIAN?
Nebraska researchers used 24 taste panels consisting of 273 people in Denver and Chicago to compare strip loin steaks from domestic (US), Canadian (C), and Australian grass-fed (A) sources. Steaks were cut at 1" thickness and matched for tenderness and marbling. However, aging (time from when steaks were vacuum packaged until they were frozen) varied, being 8 to 11 days for US, 24 days for C, and 67 to 73 days for A. Panels evaluated paired steaks to compare US and C or US and A. Compared to C, US scored statistically higher for flavor, tenderness, and overall acceptability, and tended to score higher for juiciness. US was favored by 44% of panelists, 29% by C, and 27% favored neither. Compared to A, US scored higher for all four characteristics. US was favored by 64% of panelists, 19% by A, and 16% favored neither. A silent sealed-bid auction was conducted among taste panelists for the steaks they evaluated. In every case, panelists paid significantly more (ranging from $1.37/lb to $2.23/lb) for the steak they preferred. Those preferring US paid a higher differential than those preferring C or, especially, A. Average price paid was $3.95/lb for US vs $3.57 for C and $3.68 for US vs $2.48 for A. U. S. consumers slightly favored U. S. beef over Canadian and favored U. S. over grass-fed Australian. (J. Animal Sci. 83:2863)

http://beef.tamu.edu/academics/beef/browsing/dec05.html

[grassfarmer]

There is no accounting for folks taste willowcreek eh? Kinda obvious that folks will tend to pick the type they are most familier with, to have any validity as a comparison of eating quality this test should have used 1/3 consumers in US, Canada and Australia.