Prediction of carcass composition based on specific carcass cuts in Simmental bulls

Abstract

Carcass data from 872 Simmental bulls were analysed to estimate the possibilities for prediction of muscle, fat and bone weight as well as percentage in the carcasses from measurement of specific cuts. The right carcass side was first cut into chuck, shoulder, front shank, rib roast, back, loin, tenderloin, brisket, rib, flank, leg and hind shank. Each specific cut was further separated into muscle, fat, bone and tendon. Data were analysed by multiple stepwise regression procedure. As independent variables dissected carcass side weight, weight and the percentage of specific cut and weight and the percentage of different tissues in a specific cut and their quadratic terms were included. The highest coefficient of determination was obtained from leg (for muscle, fat and bone weight 0.9678, 0.839, 0.7972 and for muscle, fat and bone percentage 0.7821, 0.7993, 0.5857). The carcass weight had no effect on average bias, whereas muscle percentage was underestimated in very lean carcasses and overestimated in very fatty one and vice versa for the predicted fat percentage.