The effect of feeding native warm season grasses in the stocker phase on the carcass quality, meat quality, and sensory attributes of beef loin steaks from grain-finished steers

• Native warm season grass (NWSG) can be fed to stocker cattle without compromising meat quality.
• Steaks from cattle that were fed Bermudagrass and NWSG were acceptable to consumers.
• Lipid oxidation was less in steaks from NWSG treatments when compared to Bermudagrass.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of feeding native warm season grass (NWSG) to beef cattle during the stocker phase (110 days) on carcass and meat quality. Treatments included Bermudagrass (BER), Indiangrass monoculture (IND), and a mixture of NWSG including Big Bluestem, Little Bluestem, and Indiangrass (MIX). Cattle were finished on grain (180 days) in a commercial feedlot and carcass data were collected after harvest. The percentages of ‘choice’ carcasses were 100, 95.8, and 87 within MIX, BER, and IND treatments, respectively. Steaks from BER had greater (P < 0.05) fat content, and lower (P < 0.05) protein and moisture percentages when compared to steaks from IND and MIX treatments. However, steaks from the MIX and IND treatments had less (P < 0.05) lipid oxidation than steaks from BER after 6 days of refrigerated storage. Results indicate that NWSG could be effectively incorporated into forage systems for stocker cattle without compromising carcass and meat quality.