The USDA beef grading system is under attack - again. But, to really understand the controversy, look at the history of federal grades and how they've been a political football. Grades for cattle and beef were initiated for one reason - to provide uniform terminology for price reporting. They were developed to help federal market newsmen report prices of cattle and beef carcasses, even though they were in different parts of the nation. They weren't intended as consumer grades, an idea that surfacedmuch later.
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