Meat Standards Australia

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The tenderness and flavour of beef, lamb and sheepmeat is dictated by a variety of factors including:

MSA

Breeding
Nutrition
Environment
Cooking length
Cooking method
Quality assurance systems on and off-farm

Meat Standards Australia™ (MSA) is a beef, lamb and sheepmeat eating quality program that removes the need for consumers to have specialist knowledge of beef and sheepmeat. MSA labels the red meat product with a guaranteed grade and recommended cooking method to identify eating quality according to consumer perceptions.

MSA involves all sectors of the production chain from paddock to plate. A wide range of cattle and sheep management practices, processing systems, cuts, ageing periods and cooking methods have been researched to determine the impact each has on eating quality.

MSA retail labels advise the correct cooking method for red meat cuts – guaranteeing the eating quality result. Extensive consumer taste testing protocols form the basis of the MSA program and following several years of extensive consumer research in Japan, Korea and the US, MLA, in collaboration with exporters, has launched a program to take MSA technology into Australia's key export markets.

Eating Quality Assured (EQA) is MLA's international eating quality program. The EQA trade mark is underpinned by MSA Standards, and EQA certification will be used to underpin individual Australian beef brands.

Customer satisfaction

MSA product must meet consumer set standards at one of three quality levels. MSA complaints regarding products or services are recorded through the use of the MSA customer complaints form. It is MSA policy to ensure that a complainant is contacted within 48 hours of a complaint being received.

MSA news

The growing momentum of MSA continued in 2009-10, with the majority of beef processors applying MSA as the minimum standard to underpin the eating quality of some or all of their brands. MSA beef grading numbers reached 1.25 million head - an increase of 27% on last year - while in its second full year of processing MSA lamb numbers more than doubled to 508,000 head. Read the media release

Producer registration

MSA member login

The feedback and benchmarking system
MSA standards manuals
MSA eDEC
Online training programs

MSA training and producer workshops

MSA training ensures participants have a solid understanding of the fundamentals of the MSA system in order to allow the system to operate to its full potential with maximum integrity. The training program is backed by a training code of practice and is designed for red meat participants along the supply chain, including:

Producers
Agents
Saleyards
Processors
End users (retail, foodservice, wholesale)

Find out more about MSA training for end users and workshops to beef up performance for producers. If you are interested in a MSA training course contact MSA or complete a MSA training application form.

MSA grading

MSA grading training and beef processor training is delivered by AUS-MEAT Limited. For a more information on training course available view the AUS-MEAT training calendar.