CALGARY – Canadian Angus beef may soon be invited to dinner at more Toronto restaurants.
With the signing of Better Beef Limited as a licensed processor, the Guelph meat plant will help the Canadian Angus Association expand its branded beef program into restaurants and retail outlets across the country.
Penny Young of the association said they are looking for a western packer to continue expansion plans.
The Canadian Angus Association has three suppliers in its marketing plan, Grace Meats, Belmont Meat Products and Pace Foods in Ontario. The two packers are St. Helen’s and the newly signed Better Beef. So far, the Angus trademark is found at the CN Tower Restaurant and Swissotel in Toronto, said Young.
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To have meat selected for the program, producers are licensed. Meat must come from Angus or Angus cross animals and must receive a marbling grade of double or triple A from a federal meat inspector. This means traces of fat in the muscle range from a slight amount to very abundant.
Quality characteristics
Guidelines set up by the Angus Association require that carcasses yield 54 percent or better. The ribeye area must be bright red and firm. Marbling should score at slight or greater. Fat covering is firm and white or slightly tinged with reddish or amber color. Muscling should have no deficiencies. The carcass must be aged a minimum of 14 days to a maximum of 21 days.
Special stamps will accompany carcasses which meet the requirements.
In the United States, the Certified Angus Beef program has been selling labeled beef since 1978.
The beef comes from licensed producers and is processed in 25 packing houses. The animals must be black beef animals with no dairy or floppy-eared cattle allowed into the program.
With steady growth every year since its inception, projected sales for the 1995 fiscal year are 230 million pounds, said Crystal Meier of the Certified Beef program office in Wooster, Ohio.
Between October, 1993 and September, 1994 more than 174 million lbs. of Certified Angus Beef went to restaurants and retail stores in the United States, she said.
Last year, 24 countries bought Certified Angus Beef with the top three customers being Japan, Canada and the Bahamas.
