3 THE MEAT OF THE MATTER U.S. consumers enjoy the most affordable, safe and nutritious source of meat protein (from burgers to pork chops, roasts, jerky, etc.) in the world. Livestock production, highlighted and honored at the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo, is the basis of a system that transforms beef, pork, lamb and poultry into the foods consumers enjoy - from ready-to-eat items to the cuts consumers bring home for backyard grilling or kitchen preparation. Between the farm and the fork, a well-trained workforce serves in critical roles ranging from product development, quality assurance, food safety and other aspects that consumers, who are mostly unaware of this critical infrastructure, benefit from on a daily basis. Many of those professionals got their start on meat judging teams that compete at the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo. Meat judging contests are pivotal in training tomorrow’s leaders in these important fields yet are likely the most obscure and least understood of all competitions the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo offers. And, while they receive little fanfare, meat judging serves as an important training tool, providing youth participants with not only unique educational insights into food science and meat production but create career development opportunities very few contests can match. JUST WHAT IS A MEAT JUDGING CONTEST? In a nutshell, meat judging competitors evaluate beef, pork and lamb carcasses, as well as individual cuts of beef and pork, on factors that impact their market value and overall consumer appeal. For example, in a “Beef Carcass Quality Grading Class” competitors are required to use quality criteria established by the United States Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Marketing Service to assign quality grades (Prime, Choice, Select, etc.) to 15 carcasses within a specified timeframe. The “Southwestern” as it’s commonly called in intercollegiate meat judging circles was first held in either the Armor or Swift packing plants (records are unclear) in 1938 when the Stock Show’s home was in the Northside Coliseum. The proximity to the plants made the Southwestern intercollegiate meat judging contest a perfect Stock Show fit, and it remained there after the FWSSR’s move to the Will Rogers Memorial Center in 1944. Stock Show officials remained strongly committed to continuing the contest after those plants closed, working with other companies to host the contest. Today, the competition is held at Columbia Packing Company in Ennis, Texas, which is owned and operated by the multi-generational Ondrusek family. Their tremendous generosity allows contest officials to have three days of full facility access to organize and hold not only the Southwestern, but the FWSSR’s 4-H and FFA Meat Judging Contest which was added in 2015. “The key to providing an outstanding meat judging contest is an adequate facility for displaying product and suitable accommodations for all competitors and Columbia Packing Company is a tremendous partner,” said FWSSR’s Livestock Show Director, Stefan Marchman. “The Ondrusek family and their crew go above and beyond in helping our contest Superintendents provide for an excellent contest for our 4-H, FFA and collegiate competitors.” The Southwestern intercollegiate contest begins at 7 a.m. sharp, traditionally on the last Sunday of the Stock Show’s calendar. Contestants will spend the morning in Columbia’s coolers in groups of approximately 20 individuals. One can hear a pin drop (talking is strictly forbidden) as contestants move around carefully analyzing the carcasses that hang from rails and cuts neatly displayed on counters. There are five carcass classes with four carcasses in each class that are evaluated for various value determining characteristics and placed accordingly. Contestants dictate detailed notes that are used for writing hand-written reasons that justify their decisions made on the morning’s classes. After a brief lunch break, contestants return to the coolers FWSSR Judging Contests Train Tomorrow’s Food Industry Leaders
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