PSVI-4 The Influence of Diet Type on Beef Cattle Performance and Meat Quality Characteristics

Abstract

Abstract The objective of this study was to determine the effect of diet type on feed intake in yearling steers. Hereford steers (n = 21; BW = 444 ± 10 kg) were assigned to one of three drylot pens based on initial BW. Each drylot pen was assigned to one of three diets: a long-stemmed grass hay (HAY, 10.8% CP, 2.11 Mcal ME/kg DM), an alfalfa hay diet (ALF, 20.5% CP, 2.85 Mcal ME/kg DM) or a mixed ration consisting of 30.0% corn silage, 28.0% DDGS, 30.0% rolled corn, 10.5% soybean meal, and 1.5% mineral supplement (CON, 22.0% CP, 2.90 Mcal ME/kg DM). Animals were fed daily at 0700 and 1700 h and weighed weekly at 0630 h. For the duration of the trial, animals were housed in drylot pens with ad libitum access to feed and water and had shade structures in each pen. Following a 14-day adaptation period, feed intake was recorded for 35 days. Body weight gain for diets HAY, ALF, and CON were 0.1, 0.77, and 1.47 kg/day, respectively. After the intake portion of the study was completed, an animal from each pen was slaughtered and evaluated for meat quality. Hot carcass weights for diets HAY, ALF, and CON were 237.4, 334.7, and 394.8 kg, respectively. Following 14 days aging, samples from the ribeye area were collected from each animal and subjected to sensory analysis and other assessments of quality. Data were analyzed as a completely random design in SAS v9.4. There was not a significant difference between the ALF diet and the CON diet based on assessment from Warner-Bratzler shear force, carcass yield, marbling score, and sensory assessment (P < 0.05). It was concluded that high-quality forage can achieve similar carcass quality without detrimental effects on meat quality when compared with a high concentrate diet.