Influence of cattle category and slaughter age on Charolais-breed carcase and meat traits

Figures & data

Table 1. Description of the slaughter age classes according to cattle category.

Cattle category	Slaughter age classes	n	Mean	SD	Min	Max
Young bulls	≤16 months	53	15.4	0.6	13.9	16.0
	]16 months; 18 months]	87	16.8	0.5	16.1	18.0
	>18 months	39	19.7	1.2	18.1	21.7
Heifers	<32 months	63	28.5	3.0	21.0	31.9
	[32 months; 36 months]	58	33.7	1.1	32.0	35.9
	>36 months	50	40.6	2.9	36.2	46.6
Cull cows	<6 years	156	4.4	0.8	2.5	5.9
	[6 years; 9 years]	122	6.0	0.9	6.0	8.9
	>9 years	93	10.9	1.5	9.0	15.8

n: number of animal; SD: standard deviation.

Table 2. Effect of cattle category on carcase traits.

	Young bulls		Heifers		Cull cows		p Value
	LS mean	SE	LS mean	SE	LS mean	SE
Measurements performed on carcase
	n = 179		n = 171		n = 371
Cold weight (kg)	434^b	9.49	402^c	9.21	455^a	8.94	<0.001
Conformation score (scale from 1 to 15)	10.17^a	0.11	9.03^b	0.10	8.84^b	0.08	<0.001
Fatness score (scale from 1 to 5)	2.66^b	0.04	3.01^a	0.04	3.02^a	0.03	<0.001
	n = 174		n = 137		n = 300
Longissimus muscle seepage (scale from 1 to 5)	1.96	0.22	1.89	0.22	1.90	0.20	0.781
Subcutaneous fat (cm)	0.20^b	0.23	0.84^a	0.20	0.81^a	0.23	<0.001
Intermuscular fat (scale from 1 to 5)	0.98^b	0.19	2.11^a	0.19	2.09^a	0.18	<0.001
Nerves (scale from 1 to 5)	1.14^b	0.11	1.37^a	0.11	1.27^a	0.10	<0.001
Overall meat grain (scale from 1 to 5)	1.53^b	0.17	1.97^a	0.17	2.12^a	0.16	<0.001
Longissimus meat grain (scale from 1 to 5)	1.28^b	0.21	1.64^a	0.21	1.60^a	0.20	<0.001
Rhomboideus meat grain (scale from 1 to 5)	0.94^b	0.18	1.39^a	0.18	1.52^a	0.17	<0.001
Fat colour (scale from 0 to 9)	1.50^b	0.27	2.77^a	0.26	2.98^a	0.25	<0.001
Colour homogeneity of muscles at the 6th rib (scale from 1 to 4)	1.87	0.07	1.79	0.07	1.81	0.06	0.529
Longissimus colour (scale from 0 to 7)	2.82^c	0.29	4.31^b	0.28	4.74^a	0.27	<0.001
Longissimus marbling (scale from 0 to 6)	0.53^c	0.15	1.46^a	0.15	1.22^b	0.13	<0.001

LS mean: least-square mean; SE: standard error.

Table 3. Effect of cattle category on meat traits.

	Young bulls		Heifers		Cull cows		p Value
	LS mean	SE	LS mean	SE	LS mean	SE
Measurements performed on raw meat
Serratus ventralis muscle	n = 163		n = 162		n = 351
Shear force (N)	79.50^a	1.86	66.30^b	1.77	61.20^c	1.26	<0.001
Longissimus muscle
Colour descriptors	n = 166		n = 163		n = 354
L*	44.60^a	0.34	42.00^b	0.32	40.00^c	0.25	<0.001
a*	18.30	0.33	18.80	0.32	18.80	0.23	0.423
b*	12.00^ab	0.162	12.30^a	0.151	11.90^b	0.118	<0.001
Texture profile analyse	n = 126		n = 152		n = 305
Springiness	0.47	0.007	0.48	0.006	0.47	0.004	0.20
Hardness (N)	1.43^b	0.05	1.64^a	0.05	1.64^a	0.03	<0.001
Cohesiveness	2.34	0.15	2.28	0.13	2.34	0.10	0.907
Resilience	0.26	0.01	0.26	0.01	0.26	0.007	0.879
Gumminess	3.37	0.24	3.71	0.21	3.83	0.16	0.233
Chewiness	1.52	0.11	1.76	0.10	1.78	0.07	0.105
Measurements performed on cooked meat (longissimus muscle)
Sensory descriptors (scale from 0 to 10)	n = 166		n = 154		n = 345
Intensity of red	3.05^c	0.20	3.50^b	0.20	4.07^a	0.18	<0.001
Initial tenderness	6.13^b	0.15	6.46^a	0.15	5.99^b	0.14	<0.001
Overall tenderness	5.74^b	0.17	6.03^a	0.17	5.50^c	0.16	<0.001
Overall juiciness	4.34^c	0.18	4.59^b	0.180	4.78^a	0.17	<0.001
Presence of nerves	1.94^b	0.24	1.85^b	0.24	2.30^a	0.24	<0.001
Residue	2.95^b	0.20	3.17^a	0.20	3.18^a	0.19	0.003
Flavour intensity	5.70^b	0.14	5.88^a	0.14	5.93^a	0.13	<0.001
Fat taste	3.38^b	0.24	3.70^a	0.24	3.75^a	0.23	<0.001
Atypical flavour	1.01^a	0.17	0.80^b	0.17	0.95^a	0.17	0.011
Flavour persistence	4.68^b	0.19	4.89^a	0.19	4.97^a	0.18	<0.001

LS mean: least-square mean; SE: standard error.

L*: lightness; a*: redness; b*: yellowness.

Table 4. Effect of slaughter age classes on carcase in young bulls.

	Slaughter age classes (months)						p Value
	≤16		]16; 18]		>18
	LS mean	SE	LS mean	SE	LS mean	SE
Measurements performed on carcase
	n = 53		n = 87		n = 39
Cold weight (kg)	446	5.61	442	4.86	438	7.04	0.524
Conformation score (scale from 1 to 15)	10.30	0.20	10.10	0.18	10.20	0.23	0.330
Fatness score (scale from 1 to 5)	2.69	0.11	2.75	0.101	2.74	0.12	0.775
	n = 46		n = 86		n = 32
Longissimus muscle seepage (scale from 1 to 5)	2.05	0.36	2.23	0.36	1.84	0.42	0.267
Subcutaneous fat (cm)	0.53	0.28	0.60	0.27	0.83	0.34	0.560
Intermuscular fat (scale from 1 to 5)	1.25^b	0.13	1.28^b	0.13	1.60^a	0.17	0.021
Nerves (scale from 1 to 5)	1.52	0.18	1.52	0.18	1.60	0.20	0.813
Overall meat grain (scale from 1 to 5)	1.96	0.12	2.07	0.10	2.09	0.16	0.651
Longissimus meat grain (scale from 1 to 5)	1.91	0.24	1.64	0.24	1.55	0.28	0.076
Rhomboideus meat grain (scale from 1 to 5)	1.36	0.19	1.29	0.19	1.23	0.21	0.651
Fat colour (scale from 0 to 9)	1.44	0.18	1.29	0.17	1.17	0.20	0.242
Colour homogeneity of muscles at the 6th rib (scale from 1 to 4)	1.91	0.13	1.87	0.12	1.78	0.18	0.774
Longissimus colour (scale from 0 to 7)	2.13	0.32	2.05	0.32	2.59	0.37	0.058
Longissimus marbling (scale from 0 to 6)	0.77	0.18	0.55	0.17	0.64	0.20	0.177

LS mean: least-square mean; SE: standard error.

Table 5. Effect of slaughter age classes on meat traits in young bulls.

	Slaughter age classes (months)						p Value
	≤16		]16; 18]		>18
	LS mean	SE	LS mean	SE	LS mean	SE
Measurements performed on raw meat
Serratus ventralis muscle	n = 47		n = 83		n = 34
Shear force (N)	80.50	4.19	81.50	3.54	80.40	5.41	0.964
Longissimus muscle
Colour descriptors	n = 47		n = 84		n = 35
L*	45.30	0.64	45.20	0.56	43.70	0.79	0.107
a*	17.90	0.70	17.70	0.62	19.20	0.85	0.147
b*	12.20	0.30	12.00	0.28	11.9	0.35	0.470
Texture profile analyse	n = 30		n = 70		n = 19
Springiness	0.48	0.01	0.47	0.01	0.45	0.02	0.373
Hardness (N)	1.57	0.08	1.43	0.05	1.44	0.09	0.298
Cohesiveness	2.23	0.22	2.37	0.17	2.05	0.26	0.647
Resilience	0.25	0.01	0.26	0.01	0.23	0.02	0.649
Gumminess	3.55	0.38	3.35	0.28	2.97	0.45	0.678
Chewiness	1.65	0.17	1.51	0.11	1.32	0.20	0.494
Measurements performed on cooked meat (longissimus muscle)
Sensory descriptors (scale from 0 to 10)	n = 47		n = 84		n = 35
Intensity of red	3.02	0.23	2.95	0.20	3.31	0.26	0.366
Initial tenderness	6.27	0.17	6.06	0.15	6.10	0.17	0.240
Overall tenderness	5.86	0.18	5.64	0.16	5.72	0.19	0.228
Overall juiciness	4.27	0.21	4.34	0.19	4.53	0.22	0.292
Presence of nerves	1.88	0.24	2.06	0.23	2.06	0.25	0.244
Residue	2.85	0.20	3.00	0.19	2.83	0.21	0.282
Flavour intensity	5.60	0.15	5.74	0.14	5.83	0.16	0.145
Fat taste	3.47	0.25	3.50	0.25	3.51	0.26	0.965
Atypical flavour	1.17	0.22	1.26	0.21	0.94	0.24	0.071
Flavour persistence	4.62	0.21	4.74	0.20	4.71	0.21	0.529

LS mean: least-square mean; SE: standard error.

L*: lightness; a*: redness; b*: yellowness.

Table 6. Effect of slaughter age classes on carcase traits in heifers.

	Slaughter age classes (months)						p Value
	<32		[32; 36]		>36
	LS mean	SE	LS mean	SE	LS mean	SE
Measurements performed on carcase
	n = 63		n = 58		n = 50
Cold weight (kg)	372^b	8.00	408^a	8.16	420^a	9.10	<0.001
Conformation score (scale from 1 to 15)	8.94	0.14	9.12	0.14	8.82	0.17	0.252
Fatness score (scale from 1 to 5)	2.98	0.05	2.98	0.05	2.92	0.06	0.582
	n = 45		n = 42		n = 42
Longissimus muscle seepage (scale from 1 to 5)	1.96	0.26	1.81	0.27	2.21	0.29	0.229
Subcutaneous fat (cm)	0.51^b	0.27	1.28^a	0.29	0.79^ab	0.29	0.009
Intermuscular fat (scale from 1 to 5)	2.14	0.28	1.99	0.28	2.06	0.30	0.814
Nerves (scale from 1 to 5)	1.41^ab	0.19	1.65^a	0.19	1.27^b	0.20	0.001
Overall meat grain (scale from 1 to 5)	2.11	0.22	2.18	0.22	2.09	0.24	0.850
Longissimus meat grain (scale from 1 to 5)	1.79	0.30	1.85	0.30	1.54	0.31	0.246
Rhomboideus meat grain (scale from 1 to 5)	1.44	0.26	1.50	0.26	1.48	0.27	0.937
Fat colour (scale from 0 to 9)	2.51	0.45	2.61	0.45	3.07	0.46	0.080
Colour homogeneity of muscles at the 6th rib (scale from 1 to 4)	1.80	0.09	1.81	0.09	1.83	0.09	0.966
Longissimus colour (scale from 0 to 7)	4.29^ab	0.42	3.63^b	0.43	4.65^a	0.43	0.001
Longissimus marbling (scale from 0 to 6)	1.35	0.25	1.62	0.26	1.42	0.27	0.428

LS mean: least-square mean; SE: standard error.

Table 7. Effect of slaughter age classes on meat traits in heifers.

	Slaughter age classes (months)						p Value
	<32		[32; 36]		>36
	LS mean	SE	LS mean	SE	LS mean	SE
Measurements performed on raw meat
Serratus ventralis muscle	n = 63		n = 54		n = 45
Shear force (N)	66.31	2.55	70.33	2.19	62.71	2.61	0.118
Longissimus muscle
Colour descriptors	n = 63		n = 54		n = 46
L*	41.90	0.56	41.60	0.56	41.90	0.69	0.855
a*	19.20	0.59	18.00	0.60	19.80	0.74	0.068
b*	12.40^ab	0.26	12.90^a	0.26	11.80^b	0.32	0.004
Texture profile analyse	n = 63		n = 50		n = 39
Springiness	0.50^a	0.01	0.46^b	0.01	0.48^ab	0.01	0.030
Hardness (N)	1.69	0.07	1.63	0.06	1.63	0.12	0.812
Cohesiveness	2.09	0.12	2.08	0.18	2.58	0.26	0.115
Resilience	0.24	0.01	0.24	0.01	0.27	0.02	0.150
Gumminess	3.58	0.26	3.38	0.29	4.10	0.43	0.313
Chewiness	1.76	0.13	1.55	0.14	1.93	0.20	0.256
Measurements performed on cooked meat (longissimus muscle)	n = 63		n = 46		n = 46
Sensory descriptors (scale from 0 to 10)
Intensity of red	3.43	0.22	3.53	0.24	3.71	0.24	0.464
Initial tenderness	6.37	0.17	6.53	0.18	6.16	0.19	0.104
Overall tenderness	5.92	0.20	6.11	0.21	5.68	0.22	0.082
Overall juiciness	4.59	0.20	4.70	0.21	4.62	0.20	0.766
Presence of nerves	1.88^ab	0.24	1.76^b	0.24	2.08^a	0.24	0.005
Residue	3.27	0.22	3.11	0.22	3.31	0.23	0.365
Flavour intensity	5.81	0.15	6.00	0.15	5.82	0.15	0.089
Fat taste	3.67	0.25	3.77	0.25	3.54	0.25	0.197
Atypical flavour	0.80	0.18	0.75	0.18	0.77	0.19	0.829
Flavour persistence	4.88	0.20	4.96	0.20	4.84	0.20	0.403

LS mean: least-square mean; SE: standard error.

L*: lightness; a*: redness; b*: yellowness.

Table 8. Effect of slaughter age classes on carcase traits in cull cows.

	Slaughter age classes (years)						p Value
	<6		[6; 9]		>9
	LS mean	SE	LS mean	SE	LS mean	SE
Measurements performed on carcase
	n = 156		n = 122		n = 93
Cold weight (kg)	446^b	5.96	469^a	6.19	461^a	6.33	<0.001
Conformation score (scale from 1 to 15)	8.96	0.14	8.89	0.15	8.73	0.15	0.101
Fatness score (scale from 1 to 5)	2.97^b	0.03	3.06^a	0.04	2.98^ab	0.04	0.050
	n = 134		n = 103		n = 63
Longissimus muscle seepage (scale from 1 to 5)	1.92	0.23	2.12	0.23	1.85	0.24	0.061
Subcutaneous fat (cm)	0.77	0.23	0.96	0.23	0.70	0.25	0.474
Intermuscular fat (scale from 1 to 5)	2.10	0.23	2.10	0.23	2.05	0.24	0.894
Nerves (scale from 1 to 5)	1.19	0.10	1.15	0.10	1.23	0.10	0.086
Overall meat grain (scale from 1 to 5)	2.04	0.20	2.23	0.20	2.16	0.20	0.069
Longissimus meat grain (scale from 1 to 5)	1.65	0.25	1.65	0.25	1.56	0.26	0.497
Rhomboideus meat grain (scale from 1 to 5)	1.37^b	0.23	1.65^a	0.23	1.61^a	0.23	<0.001
Fat colour (scale from 0 to 9)	2.73^b	0.32	3.15^a	0.32	3.10^ab	0.33	0.005
Colour homogeneity of muscles at the 6th rib (scale from 1 to 4)	1.82	0.07	1.80	0.08	1.73	0.09	0.583
Longissimus colour (scale from 0 to 7)	4.15^b	0.25	4.76^a	0.25	5.05^a	0.27	<0.001
Longissimus marbling (scale from 0 to 6)	1.12	0.16	1.28	0.16	1.21	0.17	0.297

LS mean: least-square mean; SE: standard error.

Table 9. Effect of slaughter age classes on meat traits in cull cows.

	Slaughter age classes (years)						p Value
	<6		[6; 9]		>9
	LS mean	SE	LS mean	SE	LS mean	SE
Measurements performed on raw meat
Serratus ventralis muscle	n = 149		n = 113		n = 89
Shear force (N)	62.40	1.65	61.00	1.80	58.30	2.00	0.216
Longissimus muscle
Colour descriptors	n = 150		n = 114		n = 90
L*	40.50^a	0.29	39.50^b	0.31	39.40^b	0.34	0.002
a*	18.90	0.32	18.80	0.35	18.90	0.39	0.924
b*	12.00	0.15	11.80	0.16	11.70	0.17	0.228
Texture profile analyse	n = 128		n = 99		n = 78
Springiness	0.47	0.01	0.47	0.01	0.48	0.01	0.580
Hardness (N)	1.65	0.04	1.61	0.04	1.61	0.05	0.765
Cohesiveness	2.23	0.14	2.45	0.15	2.27	0.17	0.465
Resilience	0.25	0.01	0.27	0.01	0.26	0.01	0.357
Gumminess	3.81	0.23	3.99	0.23	3.71	0.26	0.723
Chewiness	1.75	0.12	1.88	0.10	1.72	0.12	0.580
Measurements performed on cooked meat (longissimus muscle)	n = 147		n = 111		n = 87
Sensory descriptors (scale from 0 to 10)
Intensity of red	4.03	0.22	4.04	0.23	4.25	0.24	0.492
Initial tenderness	6.04	0.15	6.00	0.16	6.00	0.16	0.904
Overall tenderness	5.58	0.18	5.53	0.18	5.49	0.19	0.708
Overall juiciness	4.76	0.18	4.78	0.18	4.79	0.18	0.930
Presence of nerves	2.26	0.25	2.32	0.25	2.27	0.25	0.768
Residue	3.14	0.20	3.23	0.20	3.08	0.21	0.269
Flavour intensity	5.93	0.14	5.95	0.14	5.95	0.14	0.904
Fat taste	3.74	0.24	3.75	0.24	3.83	0.24	0.502
Atypical flavour	0.93	0.17	0.87	0.17	0.87	0.17	0.624
Flavour persistence	4.96	0.19	5.03	0.19	4.95	0.19	0.424

LS mean: least-square mean; SE: standard error.

L*: lightness; a*: redness; b*: yellowness.

Data availability statement

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author, [VM], upon reasonable request.