Redefining Quality

An odd question was stuck in my head - so naturally, I had to do the research and put it to rest so I could think about other things. The question: why doesn't anyone seem to sell "Grade A" beef anymore? It used to be all over the place, and now, all that supermarkets seem to carry is select, choice, and prime. The answer I found is a little disturbing, but worth considering in terms of quality of service and the value of brands.

Simply stated: the USDA changed he grading scale. It used to be "Grade A" (good) was the top grade of meat, "Grade B" (standard) was a lower grade that could still be sold raw, and "Grade C" (utility) was meat that had to be cooked and canned immediately in order to be sold for human consumption. There are lesser grades, mostly for pet food, but A, B, and C were the three kinds that might turn up in a supermarket.

Some time ago, they changed that to a new scale: prime, choice, good (later renamed "select"), standard, commercial, and utility (again, plus lower grades for animal consumption). The first four grades are safe to be shipped and sold raw, and the last two must be cooked and canned. That would seem to imply that the quality of supermarket beef has improved, being as there are now three grades above standard rather than just one. But that assumption is entirely wrong.

As it turns out, "prime" beef - which consumers have been convinced is an ultra-premium grade that only high-end restaurants and specialty markets can get hold of, meets the same standards as the "Grade A" beef that once was readily available anywhere. Meanwhile, "choice" and "select" are the equivalent of "Grade B" beef that was the low-end of meat that could be legally sold raw. And today's "Standard" beef? It is the equivalent of what was once "Grade C" or "Utility" beef, which couldn't legally be sold raw before the standard was changed.

And yes, this may seem a bit like hyperbole and sensationalism, feeding into the food-phobia of the present day, but here's a link to the research - the comparison of current grades and former grades is illustrated on page 41.

What this comes down to is a trick played on consumers, who would generally not accept "standard" or "utility" beef in their supermarkets, but will buy the exact same quality of meat if it's labeled "select" or "choice." In fact, most supermarkets advertise the fact that all the beef they sell is at least "select," and charge a premium for a choice and prime.

I wonder why this hasn't gotten out before now. With all the organic, free range, natural hubbub, the degradation of food standards would seem to be of greater concern. My sense is, if word gets out, there will be a lot of explaining to be done, and a loss of trust in the institutions that are supposed to protect consumers, but instead seem to be conspiring with producers to deceive and cheat them.

In the interests of fairness, it's probably worth noting that cleanliness in the food industry has greatly improved over the past few decades, and that it's probably entirely safe to consume beef of a grade that would have been a bit dangerous twenty or so years in the past, and that consumer insistence on having the very highest grade possible, even when lesser grades are entirely serviceable, is something that merits charging a premium for squeamishness.

But in the end, I'm still left with a sense of resentment about the entire affair: that rather than seek to improve a product to a standard that's higher than the authorities require, the industry lobbied to have standards lowered and redefined in order to make products appear to be "prime" or "choice" without doing anything to improve the actual quality of the product.

It's probably the easier route, and almost certainly the cheaper one, but it seems to me a violation of trust that will, over time, erode consumer confidence across the board rather than strengthen loyalty to the producers that are willing to do more for the consumer.

And to end on a brighter note, there does seem to be some effort underway to "brand" food items that were once commoditized. Chances are, consumers don't know the name of the producer of the meat they consume, and generally don't care - beef is beef - but in future, the degradation of industry standards will add value to branding, such that customers can purchase and become loyal to a specific producer, or a specific vendor, who holds themselves to a higher standard.