Rapid, confined growth favors the production
of white muscle fibers, so modern meats are
relatively pale. They’re also tender, because
the animals get little exercise, because rapid
growth means that their connective-tissue
collagen is continuously taken apart and
rebuilt and develops fewer strong cross-links,
and because rapid growth means high levels
of the protein-breaking enzymes that
tenderize meat during aging (p. 143). But
many meat lovers feel that meat has gotten
less flavorful in recent decades. Life
intensifies flavor, and modern meat animals
are living less and less.
Changing Tastes for Fat: The Modern Style
In the early 1960s, American consumers
began to abandon well marbled beef and pork
for less fatty cuts and for lean poultry. Since
marbling develops only after the animals’
rapid muscle growth slows, the meat industry
was happy to minimize fattening and improve