The effect of postexsanguination infusion of beef on composition, tenderness, and functional properties

Ninety culled dairy cows were used in this study and were paired by weight and conformation similarity. Forty-five cows were arterially infused immediately after bleeding with 10% volume by weight of a solution composed of dextrose (.23%), glycerin (.21%), a phosphate blend (.14%) and maltose (.1%). The remaining cows (45) served as controls. In infused carcasses, some quantity of solution retained was in the following order: supraspinatus, chuck greater than longissimus, loin greater than semitendinosus, round muscles. Accordingly, percentage of protein, ether-extractable fat, and protein fat-free amounts were lowered (P less than .05) and percentage of moisture and moisture protein ratio were raised (P less than .05) in the supraspinatus muscle. Tenderness (P less than .01) and protein extractability (P less than .15) were improved. No difference was observed in water-holding capacity between infused and control carcasses. Percentages of moisture fat-free (r = .85) and protein fat-free (r = -.97) were highly correlated to moisture-protein ratio. Moisture percentage of the fat-free tissue was shown to be a more consistent indicator of added moisture in infused whole carcasses compared with moisture:protein ratio and percentage of protein fat-free. Very low correlations were observed between tenderness, percentage of moisture, percentage of water-holding capacity, and ether-extractable fat. The economics of the infusion process to the beef industry is discussed.