Growth curve, blood parameters and carcass traits of grass-fed Angus steers

The increasing demand for natural products is currently transforming the meat industry, making grass-fed and finished beef a valuable option for improving profits. However, the transformation of conventional operations to grass-fed systems comprises many modifications, such as logistical, technologi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Animal (Cambridge, England) England), 2021-11, Vol.15 (11), p.100381-100381, Article 100381
Main Authors: Carrillo, J.A., Bai, Y., He, Y., Li, Y., Cai, W., Bickhart, D.M., Liu, G., Barao, S.M., Sonstegard, T., Song, J.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal welfare
Beef quality
Genomics
Grass-fed and finished beef
Growth development
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Summary:The increasing demand for natural products is currently transforming the meat industry, making grass-fed and finished beef a valuable option for improving profits. However, the transformation of conventional operations to grass-fed systems comprises many modifications, such as logistical, technological, and financial that could be very complex and expensive, involving economic risk. Therefore, in this study, we analyzed the growth curve, critical economic traits, and carcass quality and finished characteristics over several consecutive years in closely related grass-fed and finished Angus steers, to reduce the genetic effect on the results. We found that grass-fed steers require around 188 additional days to reach the market weight (approx. 470 kg) and had approximately 70% less average daily gain compared to the grain-fed and finished steers. Regression analysis demonstrated an interaction between feed and age (P 
ISSN:1751-7311
1751-732X
DOI:10.1016/j.animal.2021.100381