Enhancement of Dry-Aged Beef Quality by Dietary Supplementation of High Levels of Vitamin E

Crossbred cattle (n = 150; 10/pen) were grain-finished with the dietary addition of 2,200 international units of vitamin E (α-tocopherol) per head per day for 100 days. One low-Choice carcass (n = 12) was selected, and strip loins were collected. Low Choice control carcasses (n = 12) were randomly selected from commercial, fed-cattle production to serve as controls. Strip loins were randomly assigned to wet or dry aging for 42 days. On day 42, control dry-aged and control wet-aged loins had the highest TBARS values and vitamin E wet and dry-aged loins had lower TBARS values (P = 0.043). From the 30 free amino acids analyzed 14 increased after dry aging compared to wet aging (P \u3c .05). There was an interaction for discoloration between vitamin E inclusion (control vs high vitamin E), aging type (dry vs wet aging), and retail display day (P \u3c 0.0001). Wet-aged controls discolored fastest, followed by dry-aged controls and wet-aged high vitamin E samples. High vitamin E dry-aged samples had the lowest discoloration. There were aging type -by-days of retail display and aging type-by-vitamin E inclusion interactions for a* values (P \u3c .0001 and P = 0.0104, respectively). Generally, vitamin E inclusion samples maintained higher redness values for longer times. Principal component analysis suggests that control dry-aged samples tend to have higher negative flavor notes. These data indicate the feeding high doses of vitamin E reduces oxidation and improves flavor of dry-aged beef compared to the general population of fed cattle. Advisor: Chris R. Calkin