The following is a meat scientist’s perspective with regard to beef cattle size — and I know I’m going to catch a lot of flak for it, but it must be said.
Beef carcasses continue to get bigger and bigger. Look at the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) reported average beef carcass sizes. We’re adding on average of 5 pounds to each carcass. Now, when we look at beef carcasses as a whole, 5 pounds doesn’t sound like much, but when it is spread across a few years and a few primals, the impact becomes very noticeable at the meat-cutter level. We’re looking at rather large beef carcasses and we have somewhat limited options when it comes to merchandising the meat.