BEEF Shorthorn beef will now be on offer under Morrisons’ ‘best’ range, it was announced at the Great Yorkshire Show on Tuesday.
The supermarket chain and Beef Shorthorn Society have worked in partnership for the past six years, and the new agreement, which highlights the company’s  commitment to the breed, will see Morrisons as the sole UK supermarket to retail Shorthorn Beef.
Branded ‘Shorthorn Beef,’ the packages will carry the breed logo and will be available in selected stores from September.
Morrisons’ category director for fresh meat, Tom Richardson, said: “We are proud to launch our new Shorthorn Beef range which we believe delivers unequalled eating quality; Shorthorn beef is carefully managed from field to fork and processed in our own meat facilities meaning that we assess quality at every stage.”
With around 200 finishers supplying the scheme, and many more sought after, the supermarket is currently sourcing 130-150 cattle per year, with all those sired by a pedigree, registered Beef Shorthorn bull eligible for the scheme. From August, the scheme will offer a premium of up to 25p per deadweight kg for cattle within the O+ specification and better.
The Beef Shorthorn-sired cattle are finished for the last 90 days on a specific balanced diet comprising 35% starch DM.
Once processed the choice steak cuts are gently dry aged, which complements the breed’s inherent eating quality and produces a steak with great favour and tenderness.
Beef Shorthorn Society chief executive, Frank Milnes, commented: “We are thrilled to witness what is a landmark – the launch of the Shorthorn Beef brand, which will help to connect farming with consumers.
“Since we established our working partnership with Morrisons in 2010 which is adding value to the steers, once a by-product, BCMS registrations of Beef Shorthorn and Beef Shorthorn cross cattle have increased by a massive 64%, more than double the percentage increase in populations of the next highest breed, while during the same period, the suckler cow population has declined by approximately 8%.
“In turn, the growing demand for Beef Shorthorn as a functional suckler cow has stimulated enthusiast interest among breeders. Since 2010, growth has been exponential; pedigree Beef Shorthorn annual registrations have increased by more than 39% while society membership has risen by 42%.”
He added: “We look forward to continuing the journey working with Morrisons to help increase the supply of cattle sired by a registered Beef Shorthorn bull and make available this very high quality product accompanied by full traceability and provenance to consumers in stores throughout the country.”