What Is Prime Beef?

What exactly is "Prime Beef"? Prime Beef isn't actually a generic term; it is the highest quality grade designation of beef awarded by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The other grades of beef, in descending order are: choice, select, standard, commercial, utility, cutter, and canner. There is a similar beef grading program in the private sector called "Certified Angus Beef" (CAB). The CAB program includes all cuts of beef that are graded as USDA prime beef, as well as the top-ranked 35 percent of all USDA choice graded beef. Prime beef has the highest interweaving of flecks of fat within the meat, known as marbling. Prime beef is derived from younger cows, and many gourmands agree that this intensifies the meat's naturally delicious flavor. This makes prime beef the juiciest cut of meat available as well. Prime beef is also the rarest, most exclusive grade of beef. According to the USDA's Beef Grading Historical Record, last year only 2 percent of all USDA-graded beef in the country was given the designation "prime beef". Due to this scarcity, only a small amount of the nation's prime beef is available in retail outlets; most prime beef is purchased for use by hotels and restaurants. To make USDA Prime beef even more flavorful and more tender, some high-end restaurants will place the beef in a custom-designed cooler. In these coolers, the precise level of humidity, temperature and even the circulation of air in the cooler are all carefully controlled. Even in tough economic times, consumers see the value in choosing high-quality, organic beef. The Rodale Institute found that in 2009, despite the recession, sales of organic food increased by 5 percent. Many people are aiming to incorporate organic products in all parts of their, from bedsheets to beef. These consumers generally find the quality and taste of organic beef, coupled with the knowledge that their purchase is good for the environment, make organic beef a good value for the money. As organic choices become more widely available, and more people come to understand the benefits of eating organic beef, the future of organic beef is bright indeed!