This week we feature Dr. David Gerrard, a Professor and Head of the Department of Animal and Poultry Sciences at Virginia Tech. Dr. Gerrard has devoted his career to study the mechanisms controlling energy metabolism in skeletal muscle. This dialogue will serve as an introductory episode which outlines the basics of Meat Science.

Meat our guest: He received his B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. from Purdue University. Dr. Gerrard held various positions, including faculty at University of Missouri-Columbia (1992) and Purdue University (1996) and was a visiting scientist at the Institute National de Recherche Agronomique, France. In 2009, Gerrard accepted a faculty and leadership position at Virginia Tech and moved to Blacksburg, Virginia.

Dr. Gerrard has educated over 30 individuals who hold positions at a number of universities, government and privately funded research environments. He has been PI or co-PI of some 15 federal grants worth over $6M and has published over 105 refereed publications in a variety of journals including JAS, Meat Science, FASEB, AJP, Cell Calcium and PLOS ONE.

Today you will learn about:

1. All muscle is not the same

2. Species and meat quality

3. Dark meat vs white meat

4. Fiber type

5. Impact of age

6. Grass-fed vs grain-fed