Longissimus dorsi (loin) and gluteus medius (rump) muscles were obtained from twenty carcasses (ten grain-fed and ten forage-fed). A trained sensory panel rated longissimus dorsi steaks from grain-fed animals significantly (p < 0.05) more tender and more flavorsome than those from forage-fed animals. Fatty acid profiles indicated some significant differences due to feeding regimen. Forage-fed beef had a higher proportion of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids than grainfed beef.

A liquid chromatographic method has been developed for the determination of free fatty acids in butter. The fatty acids are converted to the p-bromophenacyl esters, via a crown ether-catalyzed reaction, without separation from the other butter components. The esters are separated on a Cis-bonded silica column by using an acetonitrile-water solvent gradient and quantitated using the ester of heptadecanoic acid as internal standard. Cu, and C ,S:i co-elute in the acetonitrile-water system but are separated using an isocratic methanol-acetonitrile-water system. Limits of detection range from 7 ng for butyric acid to 45 ng for linoleic acid. The average coefficient of variation (n = 10) for 10 free fatty acids from,a butter was 5.83%.