ONE of the first retail butchers to take part in the Certified Limousin Beef roll-out in mid 2017 was Casino’s Grant Shedden.
As the principal of Smiths Butchery on the NSW north coast, Mr Shedden adopted the new point of sale material, including I am Limo in-store posters and meat tray stickers.
Mr Shedden turns over three to four Limousin-infused carcases a week, and is looking forward to the Certified Limousin Beef program adding value to his existing marketing campaign. He expects the program to provide provenance or create a point of difference for the Limousin beef sold in his butchery.
Mr Shedden has more than three decades of experience in not only retailing Limousin beef but also breeding the cattle, allowing him to give the complete genetics to consumption picture to the household consumer.
“Lots of people like to know the story behind the beef and that is an advantage we have over supermarkets,’’ Mr Shedden said.
“We can tell our customers the genetics and animal welfare practices used before the cattle were processed. Certified Limousin Beef will differentiate the meat and will mean it is not just another meat in the marketplace.’’
Mr Shedden said it was critical to market Certified Limousin Beef to retail butcher shops not already using Limousin infused beef.
“We need to explain the benefits of using the product, the guarantee of tenderness through the F94L muscling gene in the live animal, the high yield and less bone in the carcase,’’ he said.
“Once we convert those butchers, it will increase demand for Limousin infused cattle and ultimately boost bull sales.’’
In the past, Mr Shedden has sourced Limousin infused cattle through the saleyards and finished them in an on-farm feedlot for the butchery.
Today, he sources purebred and Limousin infused cattle direct from preferred suppliers for processing at Northern Co-operative Meat Company, Casino.
The 10 to 16 month-old steers and heifers are all grain assisted to produce a consistent product.
Carcase specifications are 160kg to 240kg dressed weight with yields ranging from 58 to 64 per cent and an ideal fat cover of 6mm to 7mm.
Mr Shedden places emphasis on eye muscle area in the carcase.
“Without eye muscle area, there are no higher end cuts,’’ he said.
“With rib fillets selling for nearly $40/kg and rump steak and T-bone at $30/kg, eye muscle is fairly important.’’
Mr Shedden said marbling was not an issue in yearling beef but once cattle reached two tooth and older, it added flavor and tenderness.
“Some consumers like marbling but most don’t as an overall trend, particularly younger customers who are health and body image conscious,’’ he said.
Mr Shedden said grass fed beef was rarely requested by customers, with the vast majority not able to tell the difference between grass and grain-fed.
“As long as the beef is tender, they are quite happy.”