The findings suggest that growth-promoting implants can be a valuable tool for beef producers looking to improve their bottom line.
October 22, 2024 | West Texas A&M University – Canyon TX
In today's beef market, producers are searching for strategies to boost their efficiency and profitability. One strategy available to beef producers is growth-promoting implants, but are they effective? A new study conducted by West Texas A&M University researchers has demonstrated significant benefits of using growth-promoting implants in beef cattle production. The study, published in Applied Animal Science, reported that implanted steers consistently produced heavier carcasses with increased red meat yield compared with non-implanted animals.
The study's lead investigator, Ty Lawrence, PhD, PAS, director of the Beef Carcass Research Center, West Texas A&M University, explained, "Research has consistently shown that carcass weight increases for animals that have prolonged days on feed, but this overall weight gain can often be distributed in a less-than-ideal increase of trim fat with dilution of the more valuable percentage of lean meat."
The study group set out to understand how growth-promoting implants could affect this growth distribution, hypothesizing that implanted beef steers would also gain weight with increased days on feed but with improved lean meat yield and decreased overall fat.
The study compared the performance of 80 Charolais x Angus steers paired and randomly assigned to one of two treatments: one group received Revalor-XS implants and the control group received no implant. Each pair was randomly assigned to 1 of 10 slaughter dates over a range of days on feed from 0 to 378 days. Upon slaughter, the study team took overall carcass weight as well as overall yield of red meat (including primal and subprimal cuts), bone, and fat.
The researchers observed that implanted steers had heavier carcasses, produced more red meat, and experienced similar fat deposition compared with the control group. Furthermore, all primal cuts (except the plate) and the majority of subprimal cuts were heavier in the implanted group.
Cattle administered growth-promoting implants (REV) had increased cold side weights, bone yield, and red meat yield, with no differences in fat yield, compared with non-implanted cattle (CON). Forequarter primal weights (chuck, brisket, foreshank, rib) increased 8.4%, 6.9%, 7.2%, and 5.2%, respectively, and hindquarter primals (loin, flank, round) increased by 7.0%, 8.6%, and 6.3%, respectively. Credit: Ty Lawrence
"This research quantifies beef carcass fabrication yields and allometric coefficients of carcass components of implanted and non-implanted beef steers," said David Beede, PhD, editor in chief of the journal, who noted that their results suggest "implanted steers had greater carcass and red meat yields than those not implanted."
"Our findings suggest that growth-promoting implants can be a valuable tool for beef producers looking to improve their bottom line," said Lawrence. "By increasing carcass yield and red meat production, implanted steers can offer greater economic returns."
The findings are particularly significant given the increasing demand for high-quality beef products.
