Taste the difference: we must promote the many benefits of Irish grass-fed beef

Everything from Friesian to Wagyu and grass-fed to corn-fed was represented, across three cut categories: fillet, sirloin and rib-eye.

I was delighted to start tasting top-quality meat at 10.0 on a Tuesday morning, although my enthusiasm had waned somewhat by 5pm when I was on my 20th steak.

Each steak was presented to a sub-panel of four judges in both its uncooked and cooked form.

Uncooked steaks were scored on visual appearance, colour, marbling quality and consistency of fat trim.

The cooked steaks — grilled uniformly to a standard finish — were then scored on appearance, aroma and most importantly tenderness, flavour and succulence.

All steaks were scored without knowing the sex, breed, country of origin or production system of the animal.

I noticed distinct differences in what I believed to be grass-produced animals and those on intensive grain-fed diets.

My instincts were proven correct when the judging had ended, and we were provided with the entrant list.

The highly marbled, lighter-coloured steaks mostly originated from animals that were fed on a high-grain diet, whereas grass-fed animals supplied a cut with a much richer colour and less marbling.

These heavily marbled steaks — particularly Wagyu — scored well in tenderness and succulence, while grass-fed beef had stronger flavour and aroma.

A fellow judge, who runs a high-end steak restaurant in London, was calculating prices for some of the cuts. For him, highly marbled beef, particularly Wagyu, could command a significantly higher price at serving time.

I kept stressing to him the merits of grass-fed beef, from both an animal and environmental perspective. I think his outlook was changed somewhat: he assured me he would be introducing grass-fed Irish beef to his menu.

The Redmond Brothers from Gorey, Co Wexford — with whom I have an involvement — won silver and bronze medals for their Angus heifer beef.

They are able to produce beef of top eating quality in a sustainable, grass-based, calf-to-beef integrated system.

Beet, maize silage and home-grown cereals form an big part of the winter feeding; a Canadian report has linked fodder beet feeding with improved meat eating quality.

Gerry Giggins is an animal nutritionist based in Co Louth