Marbling Red Meat

Graders evaluate the amount and distribution of marbling in the ribeye muscle at the cut surface after the carcass has been ribbed between the 12th and 13th ribs.

Marbling red meat.

The fat in lean muscle creates a marble pattern hence the name. This is fairly intuitive since you can imagine how difficult it would be to get fat by eating grass. Marbling intramuscular fat is the intermingling or dispersion of fat within the lean. Cattle that are raised on grain will have more marbling than grass fed beef.

It is a critical factor in grading beef in the usa japan and around the world. Marbling is fat so it is largely determined by the diet of the animal and to a certain degree the breed of cattle. The fat makes the meat softer and easier to chew as there is simply less muscle fibre and collagen per unit volume of meat. While every country has their own grading scale which include various factors imf is a top consideration in all methods.

Marbling affects meat s juiciness tenderness texture and flavor attributes that determine eating experience. The actual percentage is measured by evaluating the ribeye. Marbled meat is meat especially red meat that contains various amounts of intramuscular fat giving it an appearance similar to marble. Degree of marbling is the primary determination of quality grade.