Expert to reveal secret to creating the designer dish

DESIGNER meat is on its way with cattle that are fed, bred and made dead in a way that produces a precise taste and texture.

An Australian meat expert has compiled a database for every stage of bovine life to create a specific type of steak and he will present his findings at a seminar in Borris, Co Carlow today.

Rod Polkinghorne, from the Australian Meat and Livestock Association, has already seen his ideas implemented in his own country where demand for red meat has surged in recent years.

He said: “This is not a theory, it is a fact, we are already doing it.”

The system is based on the philosophy the type of feed given to the animal, way it is slaughtered and manner it is hung can dictate the meat produced.

Michael O’Grady, marketing manager for cattle management and nutrition company Keenan, said people want confidence in the meat they eat and this allows consistency in the product. He said: “This system is able to guarantee the taste of the meat by looking at three stages in an animal’s life and feeding it to specific blueprints.

“We are looking at the niche markets; eight of every 10 pieces of meat is sold outside of Ireland and with this we can produce to the level of fat, the marbling, the taste and quality that different markets look for.”

More than 1,000 farmers use the Keenan feed management system to produce certain grades of meat for European markets.

Today’s seminar will be followed by a barbecue on the farm of Anne and Denis Large in Urlingford, Co Kilkenny, who already farm using the technique.