Food meat is known to be very tasty and tender. However, due to the small size of the bird, the amount of meat available is relatively low. In general, woodcock is considered a luxury product in many countries. There are no real varieties of woodcock, because all the woodcocks are essentially the same. However, the quality of the meat depends largely on the age of the bird, its gender, its diet and the hunting season. In general, the youngest and freshest beacons tend to have more tender and more delicate meat. The male beacons are also considered to have more tasty meat than females.