The prices for a pound of beef chuck roast, pork rib roast, ground beef, and beef liver may be about the same at your store. In many instances, a pound of these roasts will provide only about half as much cooked lean meat as a pound of ground beef or beef liver. The other half of the pound of roast is bone, excess fat, and drippings.
So it would take twice as many pounds—and twice as much money—to feed your family the roasts as it would the ground beef or liver, even though the price per pound is the same.
Poultry
In retail markets, ready-to-cook poultry is available chilled or frozen, whole or cut up. Processed poultry products are also on the market in canned, frozen, dehydrated, and other convenient forms.
USDA poultry inspection and grademarks.
Look for both the round U.S. Department of Agriculture inspection mark and the shield-shaped grademark on the poultry you buy.
The round USDA inspection mark (above, left) means that poultry and poultry products have been officially inspected for wholesomeness, are truthfully labeled, and are not adulterated. USDA inspection is required in plants that produce poultry products for sale across State lines or in foreign trade.
The shield-shaped grademark (above, right) shows that the poultry has been officially graded for quality. Poultry must be USDA-inspected before it can be federally graded. The U.S. grades for poultry are based on meatiness, freedom from defects, and general appearance. The best grade of poultry is marked “USDA Grade A.”
Chicken, turkey, duck, and goose are common forms of poultry. Guinea is available in some markets. The label may suggest suitable cooking methods and indicate the age of the poultry—for chicken: “broiler or fryer,” “roaster,” “stewing chicken;” for turkey: “fryer-roaster,” “young hen,” “young tom,” “mature turkey.”