Alternative-Style Fabrication

Alternative-style sides were weighed and then separated into primals. The shoulder–loin separation was made between the fourth and fifth rib, and the loin–ham break was made at the first sacral vertebrae at approximately a 135° angle to the spine, leaving the sirloin attached to the ham. The loin–belly separation was made at the same anatomical location as the DOM sides. Whole shoulders were skinned and trimmed, then separated into a NAMP #407 cellar-trimmed butt, bone-in shoulder clod, a NAMP #405B cushion, neck bones, petite tender (teres major), and pork brisket. The shoulder clod was then deboned (scapula removed) to produce a boneless shoulder clod. Pork briskets were cut to contain pectoralis profundis muscle and associated fat, so as to be analogous to the beef brisket (NAMP #120). The tenderloin was loosened on the posterior end so as to remain with the loin primal and not sever the most posterior portion of the tenderloin (butt tender) during the loin–ham separation. Loins and bellies were further fabricated to be as consistent with DOM sides as possible. Hams were fabricated similarly to DOM hams, but did not include the lite butt. Sirloins were separated from the ham by deboning from the hip bone. Trim was separated and weighed as described for DOM sides.