| Popis: |
Consumer beef preference is influenced by palatability traits which can differ depending on cattle finishing diets. Traditionally, cattle in the U.S. are finished on a grain-based diet, whereas in many other countries, cattle are finished exclusively on forage-based diets. The presence of U.S. beef in the international trade market has influenced some countries to change production systems to compete with U.S. beef. Currently, there is no data describing consumer perception of grain-finished U.S. imported and Honduran domestic beef. The objective of this study was to characterize beef from U.S. and Honduras feeding regimes (grain vs. forage based diets) on palatability traits and to assess the willingness of Honduran and U.S. consumers to pay for these products. All U.S. sourced strip loins from grain-finished cattle, aged 21 d, were selected to equally represent Select (USS) (USDA Select; n = 6) and Top Choice (USTC) (upper 2/3 USDA Choice; n = 6) quality grades. Additionally, strip loins (n = 6) from Honduran grass-finished (HGRASS) cattle and grain-finished (HGRAIN) cattle (n = 6) were collected from a packing plant in Siguatepeque, Honduras and aged 21 d. Sub-primals were fabricated into 2.5 cm-thick steaks and frozen (-20oC). A steak from each striploin was selected to conduct proximate analysis in which fat, collagen, moisture and protein percentages were determined. Steaks were thawed for 24 h at 2 to 4oC prior to consumer evaluation and were cooked on clamshell grills to 77°C. Each steak was portioned into 10 uniform pieces and served warm to panelists. A consumer panel (n = 240 panelists) was conducted during the yearly Pan-American Fair at Zamorano University in Honduras. A second consumer panel (n = 240) was conducted at Texas Tech University. Each sample was evaluated on an 8-point hedonic scale for flavor, tenderness, juiciness, overall liking and acceptability for each palatability trait. Willingness to pay for each sample was rated in U.S dollars: $0, $3, $6, $10 per pound and for the panel conducted in Honduras the equivalent of Lempiras was used. Results from proximate analysis demonstrate that protein percentages for the two U.S. treatments and the HGRASS treatments were similar (P < 0.05). There were no statistical differences (P < 0.05) in fat percentage between USTC and HGRAIN treatments. USS and HGRASS demonstrated greater moisture percentages. The two U.S treatments were scored higher (P < 0.05) for tenderness, flavor, and overall liking compared to both Honduran treatments; however, consumers rated USTC higher (P < 0.05) than USS for all traits. Consumers scored HGRASS higher (P < 0.05) than HGRAIN for each trait. Honduran consumers gave higher ratings (P < 0.05) for all traits compared to U.S consumers. Acceptability for tenderness was similar (P > 0.05) between USTC and USS, but a greater (P < 0.05) percentage of U.S. samples were acceptable for tenderness compared to either Honduran treatment. A higher percentage (P < 0.05) of Honduran consumers rated all traits more acceptable than U.S. consumers. For all traits, Honduran consumers ranked acceptability greater than U.S. consumers. Consumers from this study were willing to pay $4.05 per pound for USTC samples, but were only willing to pay $1.75 per pound for HGRAIN samples. Results indicate consumers’ preference for U.S. beef strip loin steaks compared to Honduran domestic beef finished by grain or grass feeding. Changes may be needed to improve domestic beef production practices in Honduran beef. |
