Natural steers had a greater percentage of carcasses in the upper 2/3 of USDA Choice grade (48.7 vs. 18.7%, P < 0.01), a greater percentage of YG 4 and 5 carcasses (25.4 vs. 9.3%, P < 0.01), and a greater percentage of abscessed livers (39.6 vs. 10.5%, P < 0.01) compared with CONV steers.