Setting the Standard
Keeping Score with MQ4The key to the MSA grading system is the meat quality score (MQ4), which is a numeric measure of the consumer’s acceptability of a piece of beef. The formula is based on the four major characteristics consumers use to rate a satisfying beef-eating experience: tenderness, juiciness, flavor and overall liking.
These percentages were established from statistical analyses, and they provide the optimal relationship between the ‘lines and boxes’ marked on the consumer score sheets (see Figure 1).
The cutoff point for consumer acceptability is determined by correlating MQ4 scores with the two product categories of “unsatisfactory” and “good everyday quality.” All products graded EQA are at least “good everyday quality” and have an MQ4 score of at least 46
In collaboration with Texas Tech University, EQA researchers conducted 10,000 individual taste tests of chilled Australian and US beef in the United States to demonstrate the program’s ability to accurately predict eating quality satisfaction across various beef cuts.
We also used the test data to calculate the optimum cutoff scores by city, age and gender (see Figure 2). Figure 2 shows that the cutoff point for “good everyday quality” is consistent around 43, which is below the EQA cutoff score of 46.
Figures 3 and 4 show how the MSA model works by demonstrating the impact of different carcass attributes (in this case ossifi cation, marbling and aging) on the meat quality score (MQ4) of individual cuts across various cooking methods.
