Bruises are painful but the extent of them is not seen until cattle reach a packing plant.
Once the hides come off carcasses, bruises are often found on the dorsal midline and can affect high-value cuts, said Lily Calloway Edwards of Colorado State University.
“Bruises tell us a story,” she said at a recent University of Calgary veterinary conference.
A former employee with JBS, she noted bruises can degrade a carcass because the injury must be trimmed away.
“It is an economic concern because it is food we are bruising,” she said.
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The colour, size and location of bruises can reveal when and how the injuries happened.
The amount of bruising may be underestimated. Most are medium sized but some are deep bruises that trimmers at the plant recognize and remove.
Bruises change colour over time. A yellow bruise probably happened 48-72 hours earlier so did not likely occur at the plant
“Age is the controversy in the bruise world,” Edwards said.
People want to know if it happened at the farm, during transport, at the auction or at the packing plant.
“Bruising is an outcome we can use to assess systems to continually improve animal welfare and handling,” she said.
“It can occur anytime animals are handled.”
Cattle are getting bigger but facilities are not increasing in size. Trailer dimensions may cause bruising.
Unloading may be one of the least stressful events but getting on the truck could lead to more traumatic events.
Holsteins seem to show more bruises, particularly if they are transported in combination trailers. The clearance height may not be high enough for these taller animals so they can more easily get hurt.
The 2016 National Cattlemen’s Beef Association quality audit found 38.9 percent bruising incidence in finished steers and heifers. Bruises cost the American industry C$35 million a year.
The Canadian national beef quality audit estimated bruising costs the industry $5.5 million. Up to 3.2 pounds must be trimmed away, however the audit found the majority of bruising resulted in minimal trim.
In the 2016-17 audit, 32.6 percent of fed cattle and 63 percent of non-fed had bruises, compared to 34 percent and 85.7 percent respectively in the 2010-11 audit.
The full Canadian audit results may be viewed at bit.ly/2QQfAxF
