> Non-saleable fat is all waste for the producer. so much work has gone into > cattle-breeding to 'fix' this problem, eg: > > Piedmontese has proven to be the one carcass breed to effectively trim the > fat from a cattle operation. Today's cattleman cannot afford the expense of > fat, and must recognize the preferences shown by today's "fat conscious" > consumer. However, eating quality can become a concern with ultra-lean > beef, with the notable exception of Piedmontese-sired beef. > http://www.montanarange.com/history_north_amer.html yes they try to resolve this waste( apparent fats and bones ) by breeding but they still look for a juicy steack ( meaning marbled ) with less apparent fats . this apparent fat is still seen as an indesirable consequence of bigger muscles( with fats in between muscles fibers ) .the farmer is trying to give the least amount of food for the maximum weight of carcass . it is still better economically for the farmer to produce a heavier animal even if some part of the extra weight will have to be trimed as apparent fats . the economical logic is working against quality that is as in wild animals very lean muscles with a good amount of extra muscular fats on a heavy bone structure ( the bones of domestic animal are very much less dense ) the farmer that supply me with highland cattle had to go grain finish because its customers were complaining about the unpalatability of the meat when they were purelly grass fed . I am left alone wanting him to do grass fed only .( with me there is no waste i eat everything on an animal so am not attached to big muscles ) jean-claude