Effects of Spray Chilling and Carcass Spacing on Beef Carcass Cooler Shrink and Grade Factors

Abstract

A two-part study was conducted at a commercial beef slaughter plant to determine the effects of conventional and spray chilling on carcass yields and traits, and also to determine the effects of carcass spacing on carcass yields in a spray-chilling system. In the first part, 15 steer beef carcasses per day were selected on three consecutive days, and alternate right and left sides were subjected to conventional or spray chilling. In part II, 10 carcasses per treatment per day were selected for 3 d and 24 carcasses per treatment on d 4, to test the effects of three carcass-spacing treatments on yield and USDA grade. Spray-chilled sides shrank only .54 kg (.32%), which was 1.90 kg, or 1.14%, less (P<.05) than conventionally chilled beef sides. Spray-chilled sides also had significantly younger skeletal and overall maturity scores than conventionally chilled sides. Vacuum-packaged inside rounds (IMPS 168) from spray-chilled sides had signifieandy more purge (.04 kg or .26%) than those from conventionally chilled sides. Spacing treatments where foreshanks were aligned in opposite directions and where they were aligned in the same direction but with 15 cm between sides both resulted in less shrink (P<.05) during a 24-h spray-chill period than the treatment where foreshanks were aligned in the same direction but with all sides tightly crowded together. (

Moisture Uptake during Washing and Spray Chilling of Holstein and Beef-Type Steer Carcasses

“…Although no differences (P > .05) in percentage carcass shrink existed between fat and trim sides in the 6-h spray-chill cycle (Figure 2), the surface of the trimmer carcasses appeared overly wet. The yield improvement of 6-h sprayed-chilled sides surpassed yield advantages reported by Heitter (1975) and Allen et al (1987), but the yields of 3-h spray-chilled sides are in agreement with results reported by those authors. The benefits of spray-chilled sides are in agreement with results reported by those authors.…”

“…Heitter (1975) reported that the Chlor-chill system reduced shrink by .5 to 1.25%, depending on carcass type and individual plant. Allen et al (1987) found that spray chilled beef sides shrank .3% compared with 1.5% for non-sprayed, chilled sides. Those authors stated that, although variation in carcass shrink of spray-chilled sides was influenced by carcass spacing, other factors, especially those affecting the dynamics of surface tissue moisture, may be involved.…”

MEAT QUALITY, BACTERIOLOGY AND RETAIL CASE LIFE OF BISON LONGISSIMUS LUMBORUM FOLLOWING SPRAY CHILLING

“…Spray chilling during carcass cooling is effective for controlling evaporative cooler shrink loss. Previous research has demonstrated significant reductions in carcass weight loss for beef (Allen et al . 1987; Jones and Robertson 1988; Greer and Jones 1997) and lamb (Brown et al .…”

Shrouding, Spray‐chilling and Vacuum‐packaged Aging Effects on Processing and Eating Quality Attributes of Beef

“…Researchers (Allen et al, 1987;Jones and Robertson, 1988b) have shown spray-chilling to be more effective in reducing carcass shrinkage than conventional air-chilling. However, studies on the effects of spraychilling on the palatability of beef are lacking.…”