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The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of various dietary energy levels on the carcass and meat characteristics of feedlot-finished steers. A total of 27 purebred and crossbred Charolais and Nellore steers were used, with a mean initial age of 22 months and weight of 253 kg. The animals were allotted to a completely randomized design with three treatments and nine replicates each. Dietary treatments were arranged so that the average forage to concentrate ratio (FCR) was equivalent to that of a constant FCR treatment. The treatments consisted of CT (constant FCR at 60 to 40), CT5 (starting with 70: 30 FCR and finishing with 50: 50 FCR, that is, a mean overall FCR of 60: 40), and CT10 (starting with 80: 20 FCR and finishing with 40: 60, that is, a mean overall FCR of 60: 40). The dietary treatments did not affect slaughter weight, carcass weight, carcass conformation, physiological maturity, subcutaneous fat thickness, ribeye area, marbling score, and carcass measurements or the yield of commercial cuts. Chilling loss was higher in CT10 steers (2.41%) than in CT (2.26%) and CT5 (2.15%). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]