Tenderness is probably the most important aspect of eating quality in pigmeat although recent industry trends towards leaner carcasses and faster processing times may have tended to reduce it. Two major biological characteristics affecting tenderness are the concentration of intramuscular lipid (marbling fat) and the activity of proteolytic enzymes. This study has compared different levels of three factors which are known to affect these characteristics i.e. breed, feeding level and meat conditioning time. The aim was to contrast production and processing effects on tenderness and provide more information on how it can be controlled.