Certified Angus Beef?

I am familiar with the designations Prime, Select, and Choice.

What about the designation "Certified Angus Beef?" Is this an explicit or implicit statement about the quality of the meat? Or marketing B.S.?

"Certified Angus" is to beef, as "Heinz" is to ketchup. It is a trademarked name, very successfully marketed.
In order to be accepted into the "Certified Angus" program, an animal has to grade out toward the top end of "Choice." They have certain specs WRT marbling, yield grade, etc. However, that does not guarantee its superiority to a piece of beef that doesn't carry the mark. When presented with a choice between "CAB" and "USDA Prime" I will take Prime every time. When choosing between "USDA Choice" and "CAB" I usually let the price and appearance tell me what to do.

The USDA grades should be your primary guide when selecting beef.

I would say that "Certified Angus Beef" is more similar to the "Gallo Nero" mark on Chianti, or to the "Meritage" designation on California wines, than to "Heinz" on ketchup.

"Heinz" is the trademark of a single company. "Certified Angus Beef" and "Meritage" are the trademarks of trade associations that have several completely independent companies as members.

But as pointed out it says little beyond "USDA Choice" other than that the flesh came from the Angus breed of cattle.

-Paul W.

Mike,

Angus is a breed of cattle that has it's origins in Scotland. In order for cattle to be "Certified Angus Beef" then their bloodline has to be traceable to Angus parentage; one parent or two grandparents. CAB cattle must also have a predominance of black hair (at least 51%).

Cattle genes carry a protein called myostatin (other mammals may to, I don't know; I'm just talking cattle here). This protein inhibits muscle growth. Angus cattle have more myostatin and, therefore, more intramuscular fat and "marbling" making the meat more flavorful and tender.

CAB meat has the same grading standards as other meat (prime, choice, select, standard, and utility). Just because something is labeled "Angus" doesn't mean that it is the same as "Certified Angus Beef" as the bloodlines must be traceable as stated above. The National Cattleman's Beef Association shows that about 8% of beef in the U.S. carries the "Certified Angus" label.

Hope that helps.

rwj

We actually had a butcher with a perfectly straight face tell us that all the meat packaged as Certified Angus Beef was prime!

We actually had a butcher with a perfectly straight face tell us that all the meat packaged as Certified Angus Beef was prime!

He may have been telling you the truth. There is a portion of CAB that grades Prime.
That's why I say that the USDA grade trumps any trade labels.

whoops - I just reread your post - he said "All" and that is complete B.S.

More about it here:
http://www.certifiedangusbeef.com/corp/about/

"Certified Angus" is to beef, as "Heinz" is to ketchup. It is a trademarked name, very successfully marketed.
In order to be accepted into the "Certified Angus" program, an animal has to grade out toward the top end of "Choice." .......

So as a guess, $7.52 per pound for a bone-in CAB rib roast is a decent price? I say that because Prime would probably be $18 per pound and if CAB is at the top end of Choice......$10/>100% is a pretty hefty premium for what is unlikely to be a quantum leap in quality. Am I missing anything here?

[Jenise]

CAB cattle must also have a predominance of black hair (at least 51%).

So does this mean you're a Certified Angus Guy?

So as a guess, $7.52 per pound for a bone-in CAB rib roast is a decent price? I say that because Prime would probably be $18 per pound and if CAB is at the top end of Choice......$10/>100% is a pretty hefty premium for what is unlikely to be a quantum leap in quality. Am I missing anything here?

Mike, I would say that your $7.52 is more than a decent price. It is not great because I buy USDA choice boneless ribeye at Sam's Club for $5.88. Sam's doesn't handle CAB or at lease does not advertise that way. Another thing is there will be a difference in price for what is casually called "prime rib roast" depending on whether it came from the small end or the large end of the loin. Small in this case is better. Or, so I have always been led to believe. See here and scroll down to roasts. http://www.foodsubs.com/MeatBeefLoin.html

CAB cattle must also have a predominance of black hair (at least 51%).

So does this mean you're a Certified Angus Guy?

I will refrain from the obligatory bull-riding joke here.

rwj

We ended up getting a 23 pound CAB rib roast at $7.52 per pound. Cut it into 3 pieces....roughly 12-1/2 pounds for Christmas dinner, then 6 pound and 4-1/2 pound pieces that we froze for future use. The roast turned out great, very tasty, with leftovers for several days.

We would definitely do this again.