Top Wagyu breeders compete for best ribeye steak honors
Many top breeders have entered a unique competition that defines the most outstanding ribeye steaks from Wagyu cattle bred and raised in the US. It combines advanced technology with the art of cattle raising to offer a new way to determine quality.
Five categories of excellence will be used to analyze each contestant's ribeye entry:
- The Japanese Carcass Camera. The grading technology uses an app to turn a smartphone into a highly specialized carcass grading device. This digital technology reveals precisely how much marbling a piece of the famed beef derived from Japanese genetics may contain.
- Complete Fatty Acid Profile. This extended lab test defines the healthiest beef. It measures the number of monounsaturated fats to trans fats and the total composition of the fatty acids present.
- Marbling fineness calculations (relate to the distribution of fine flecks of buttery flavor)
- The Warner Bratzler Shear Force test for tenderness (the breed standard, averages the tenderness of plugs of beef taken from a single ribeye to evaluate the tenderness of every inch of the ribeye)
- A Professionally Trained Taste Panel. The professional Panel has a score sheet of taste identifiers they rank from 1 to 10.
"Raising the bar beyond taste and using precise, objective scientific valuations are most important in proving the merits of a producer's carcass, which, in turn, determines value," said Desi Cicale, founder, and CEO of the Triple Crown Steak Challenge.
"The new Japanese phone app will open the door for all breeders to photograph their carcasses and have them graded to gain insight into their beef. The data gleaned from one photograph is beneficial to breeders, producers, and consumers." meatimaging.com
A unified grading system and a printout of the health benefits will provide consumers with verification of the various producer programs. The ultimate goal is to acknowledge the Champions of the Triple Crown Steak Challenge and educate consumers about Wagyu beef and its health benefits. The competition will also encourage consumers to buy Wagyu from the Steak Challenge entrants and connect them to local breeders in their area.
A video of the testing will be available to view by anyone who signs up at triplecrownsteakchallenge.com.
Signing up automatically enters visitors a chance to win Wagyu Ribeye Steak Gift Boxes, drawings for one lucky winner each week from September 5 until October 1, 2021.
The Challenge invites consumers to visit their website triplecrownsteakchallenge.com and meatimaging.com to learn about the new technology and information available about Beef. Consumers may also subscribe free to Witt magazine, an online publication with the latest news about food and beef innovations, technology, and traditions. https://www.wittmagazine.com
The scores compiled from all of the analysis will determine the Triple Crown winner and recipient of the grand prize announced on October 1, 2021, at a prepurchased ticketed multicourse Wagyu and wine fine dining event held at Joseph Decuis Wagyu Farm, Columbia, Indiana. Joseph Decuis Restaurant invites patrons to experience a Wagyu elevated sensory dining experience.
For tickets, visit www.atasteofwagyuevents.com.
On a final note, The Triple Crown Steak Challenge benefits everyone by releasing all the collected data to the USDA in hopes of expanding the grading system to assist consumers in purchasing quality beef. For more information or questions, don't hesitate to get in touch with www.triplecrownsteakchallenge.com.
Source: Triple Crown Steak Challenge
Looking for a reprint of this article?
From high-res PDFs to custom plaques, order your copy today!
