Beef Carcass Yield Grades: What Do They Mean And How Are They Calculated?

Beef carcass yield grades (YG) are used to estimate cutability, which is the amount of boneless, closely trimmed retail cuts from the round, loin, rib and chuck a carcass will yield. The system uses a numeric scale of 1 to 5; YG 1 carcasses have the highest, most-desirable cutability and YG 5 carcasses have the lowest, least-desirable cutability. There are four carcass characteristics that factor into a YG equation: hot carcass weight (HCW), ribeye area (REA), backfat thickness (BF) and kidney, pelvic and heart fat (KPH).

Yield Grade Equation Factors

Hot carcass weight is the weight of a carcass as it is leaving the harvest area, before entering a cooler to be chilled. This number can usually be found on the identification tag of the carcass.
Ribeye area is reported in square inches and is measured on the ribeye muscle that is exposed when a carcass is ribbed. (Ribbing a carcass is the process of cutting through the backbone of the side of beef between the 12th and 13th rib. This cut separates the forequarter from the hindquarter of the carcass.) The REA can be measured using a ribeye grid, which is made of a transparent plastic and has 0.1 square-inch boxes with dots in the middle. To measure the REA, place the grid on the ribeye and count how many dots are touching the ribeye muscle. Make sure you don’t count the dots touching the muscles surrounding the ribeye, and that you are counting dots, not squares. Every ten dots equal one square-inch.
Backfat thickness is measured in inches using a small ruler. The proper place to measure backfat thickness is ¾ of the length up the ribeye from the backbone end, perpendicular to the outside surface of the carcass.
Kidney, pelvic and heart fat is an estimation of the percentage of HCW made up by the fat in the kidney, pelvic and heart areas. This is the most-subjective measurement factored into a yield grade, but most carcasses in the Midwest have between 2-3.5% KPH.

Calculating Yield Grades

Yield grades can be calculated based on the following equation:

Table 1
Backfat (inches)	PYG
0	2.0
.2	2.5
.4	3.0
.6	3.5
.8	4.0
1.0	4.5
1.2	5.0
1.4	5.5

Table 1

Backfat (inches)

PYG

2.0

2.5

3.0

3.5

4.0

1.0

4.5

1.2

5.0

1.4

5.5

Table 2.1
HCW (lbs.)	Required REA (in.²)
600	11.0
650	11.6
700	12.2
750	12.8
800	13.4
850	14.0
900	14.6
950	15.2
1000	15.8

Table 2.1

HCW (lbs.)

Required REA (in.²)

600

11.0

650

11.6

700

12.2

750

12.8

800

13.4

850

14.0

900

14.6

950

15.2

1000

15.8

Table 2.2
HCW (lbs.)	Required REA (in.²)
600-608	11.0
609-616	11.1
617-224	11.2
225-633	11.3

Table 2.2

HCW (lbs.)

Required REA (in.²)

600-608

11.0

609-616

11.1

617-224

11.2

225-633

11.3

Table 3
KPH (%)	Adjustment
4.5	+0.2
4.0	+0.1
3.5	0
3.0	-0.1
2.5	-0.2
2.0	-0.3
1.5	-0.4
1.0	-0.5

Table 3

KPH (%)

Adjustment

4.5

+0.2

4.0

+0.1

3.5

3.0

-0.1

2.5

-0.2

2.0

-0.3

1.5

-0.4

1.0

-0.5

Beef Carcass Yield Grades: What Do They Mean And How Are They Calculated?

Yield Grade Equation Factors

Calculating Yield Grades

STEP 1

Table 1

STEP 2

Table 2.1

Table 2.2

STEP 3

Table 3

Example

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