| A TASTE OF ITALY IN BURNETT
BEEF CHAIN
(Part Two) |
| Mr. Braithwaite said the
meat quality of the Piedmontese cross had proven "much softer" than
its high muscling appearance suggested, and produced finely
textured, tender, flavorsome beef. |
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His reason for quickly
returning to the Roses with more orders was based on what he
described as "incredible" customer response to the Piedmontese cross
beef. While his shop's trials with MSA beef had yielded only
minimal customer comment, he was overwhelmed by the high level of
return demand the Piedmontese cross beef generated. |
| In fact, he estimates his
shop sale of beef have now increased by 300pc since he first began
buying the Rose's cattle. "At first we were
concerned about whether we would get adequate fat cover, but in the
cross they have been getting 6 to 7mm, and have an extremely high
meat to bone yield of about 78% - that compares with about 70% on
average.
"We are now selling the Piedmontese as quickly as
we can get it. We've almost cleaned Jeffery out this year and we
are taking them as often as he can give them to us." |
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Mark Hobbs, the butcher who manages
Mr Braithwaite's Hervey Bay butchery,
with a Piedmontese cross hindquarter.
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Mark Hobbs, the butcher
who manages Mr. Braithwaite's Point Vernon Butchery at Hervey Bay,
described the Piedmontese beef as "pretty freaky": "Sometimes
the fat cover is as low as 2mm and if you looked at it you might
give it only one or two star MSA rating, but it has the eating
quality of 4 or 5," Mr. Hobbs said. "It is
the sort of beef butchers have been looking for 40 years - low fat
but still full of flavour and tenderness". |
| Mr. Braithwaite, who has
worked in the Australian meat trade for 20 years, personally selects
the steers from the Ross, taking them at about 18 to 20 months when
they normally dress between 250kg and 260kg. |
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He prefers them crop fed with access
to grain which he says provides the eating quality of grass-fed and
the white fat colour of grain, results in a "very good quality,
presentable product". |
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