Hall, Nicolette GibsonSchonfeldt, H.C. (Hettie Carina)Pretorius, Beulah2015-11-022016-02Hall, N., Schonfeldt, HC & Pretorius, B 2016, 'Effect of animal age and trimming practices on the physical composition of Bonsmara beef', Food Chemistry, vol. 193, pp. 160-165.0308-8146 (print)1873-7072 (online)10.1016/j.foodchem.2014.12.048http://hdl.handle.net/2263/50291Increased economic incentive for producing young and leaner carcasses, as well as demand for lean meat from progressively health conscious consumers, are considered drivers for change in carcass composition over time. Furthermore, many retailers trim visible fat from meat to various degrees and consumers increasingly remove visible fat from meat prior to, or after, cooking. The objective of this study was to determine the composition of South African Bonsmara beef from four age groups from different production systems, as well as to extrapolate the effect of fat trimming on physical composition. Fat content of marketable beef has decreased notably since the 1930s, and beef from the South African Bonsmara breed contains less than 10 g lipid per 100 g after trimming of subcutaneous fat, irrespective of age. Removal of all visible fat reduces the lipid content to less than 5 g per 100 g, comparing favourably with other lean animal products.en© 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Notice : this is the author’s version of a work that was accepted for publication in Food Chemistry. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. A definitive version was subsequently published in Food Chemistry, vol. 193, pp. 160-165, 2016. doi : 10.1016/j.foodchem.2014.12.048.Physical compositionBeefSouth African carcass classification systemBonsmara cattleCarcass ageFatnessLipid contentPostprint Article