Certified Angus Beef, a popular branded beef in the United States, can now be produced in Canada.
The American Angus Association granted licences to Cargill Foods of High River, Alta., and Lakeside-IBP at Brooks, Alta. They will be allowed to grade eligible Canadian carcasses with the Certified Angus Beef red, black and white shield.
“We had requests from licensees on all sides, from restaurateurs, the retailers and the packers, to look into it,” said Steve Suther of the Certified Angus Beef program.
The product is already available in restaurant chains like Earl’s and Joey Tomatoes as well as Overwaitea in British Columbia. But the beef had to be imported from the U.S.
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Under the agreement, licensed packers identify Angus-type cattle for U.S. Department of Agriculture evaluation and certification. Licensed fabricators then prepare it for distribution to a wide network of retail, restaurant and international licensees.
The certification specifications are stringent.
“Typically about 17 percent of the cattle meeting live specs in the U.S. will also meet the carcass specs and become CAB product,” Suther said.
It is estimated 400,000 head in Canada’s beef slaughter meet the basic specifications for Certified Angus Beef.
Last year, more than 493 million pounds were sold. Projections are for sales to reach 579 million this year. The product holds 65 percent of the share of the 40 branded beef offerings in the U.S. Many of these programs are copycats riding on the coat tails of CAB.
“The problem is they have lower standards and if the consumer is dissatisfied, they might associate that with all Angus, including Certified Angus Beef,” Suther said.
The program demands eligible cattle have 51 percent black hide. This has spurred the popularity of black cattle, although many are rejected once they reach the carcass stage.
It may be some time before the black hide requirement is changed.
“We have to get closer to source-verified and eventually DNA technology that should satisfy all parties on the Angus heritage of these cattle,” Suther said.
Eligible animals must be between nine and 30 months of age with a neck hump no higher than five centimetres.
The meat must grade Prime or top two-thirds Choice, indicating modest to abundant marbling. No blood splashes or dark cutters are allowed.
Producers receive a direct premium of more than $4 per hundredweight.
Specifications on the Canadian side have been adjusted to meet standards here.
The carcass must grade Canada Prime or the upper two-thirds of AAA. Muscling must have color, texture, firmness and overall skeletal characteristics that meet the requirements for Canada A or higher carcass quality. They must have an estimated lean yield of 55 percent or higher, medium or fine marbling texture and moderately thick or thicker muscling. Carcasses must be moderately wide and thick in relation to length with no neck hump exceeding five cm.
There should be little impact on the Canadian Angus Beef program initiated here several years ago, said Libby Sally of the Canadian Angus Association. There is a large enough market for both.
“We’re looking at two separate branded programs,” she said.
“Our specs are somewhat different than theirs so we haven’t explored a collaboration or amalgamation.”
About one million lbs. were sold last year in Canada, mostly in restaurants.
“Just within our program in the last three years we have seen growth of 20-25 percent in sales volume,” she said.
The American programs are enjoying a 15-20 percent yearly growth.
“The programs are just taking off. I can’t see it slowing down,” Sally said.
The intention is to ultimately draw Canadian animals from the Angus tagging program. More than 17,000 tags have been distributed to verify Angus bred cattle.
To wear the tag, animals must have a minimum of 50 percent proven Angus parents in their pedigree regardless of hide color.
The Canadian product is processed by Edmonton Meat Packers and XL Foods in Moose Jaw, Sask. It is available Canada-wide, mostly in restaurants, specialty butcher shops and A & P Foods in Ontario.
