A Comparative Review of the Beef Carcass Classification Systems of Selected African Countries with the Red Meat Classification System Found in the European Union

Beef carcass classification represents an assurance to the consumer that the meat conforms to established set of official standards according to consumer demands and expectations. Most beef carcass grading systems combine both the grades for quality (carcass maturity, fatness, conformation, carcass defects) and quantity (expected yield). However, there is scarcity of documented information on the existing beef classification systems among some African countries. The main purpose of this review is to highlight the heterogeneity of the existing beef grading systems in selected African countries. The criteria used in beef carcass classification systems of these African countries were examined in the present study, and compared with the European Union red meat classification system. The results of this review indicated lack of uniformity in beef carcass classification systems among the selected African countries. In addition, the results show that at the moment some African countries have not adopted an objective system of beef carcass grading. Therefore, the existing red meat classification system using non-objective visual assessment of beef carcasses could be biased. The use of objective quality indices/attributes is recommended as a form of an improvement that will be aligned with consumer expectations.