Table 3.

Number of individuals in each MBV group (N), descriptive statistics, and percent CV for carcass characteristics in Charolais steers

Traits	Group	N	Mean	SD	CV (%)
Hot carcass weight, kg	Q—Quality	22	379.45ns	25.42	6.70
	L—Lean	89	384.89ns	29.63	7.70
	M—Marbling	30	385.73ns	32.22	8.35
	O—Other	40	385.25ns	28.25	7.33
	Overall	181	384.45	29.13	7.58
Average back fat, mm	Q—Quality	22	5.93a	2.46	41.56
	L—Lean	89	5.65a	2.17	38.31
	M—Marbling	30	8.72b	3.23	37.04
	O—Other	40	8.48b	2.92	34.51
	Overall	181	6.82	2.92	42.80
Rib eye area, cm2	Q—Quality	22	99.93a	9.74	9.75
	L—Lean	89	97.29a	9.48	9.75
	M—Marbling	30	88.26b	8.07	9.15
	O—Other	40	88.19b	9.77	11.08
	Overall	181	94.10	10.43	11.09
Lean meat yield, %	Q—Quality	22	63.73a	2.67	4.18
	L—Lean	89	63.25a	2.34	3.69
	M—Marbling	30	59.48b	2.68	4.50
	O—Other	40	59.42b	2.62	4.42
	Overall	181	61.85	3.13	5.05
Marbling scores	Q—Quality	22	432.09a	55.09	12.75
	L—Lean	89	353.45b	41.74	11.81
	M—Marbling	30	432.47a	63.93	14.78
	O—Other	40	340.13b	39.93	11.74
	Overall	181	373.16	60.46	16.20

¹Within columns for a given trait, means followed by the same letter are not significantly different according to Tukey (P < 0.05), ns = nonsignificant.