Abstract
The aim of the research was to establish an effect of gas stunning of pigs at slaughter on the condition of the internal organs and pork functional-technological characteristics. The experiment was carried out in the conditions of the operating enterprise on 37 Large White pigs. When using 94% concentration in a chamber, only 65% of animals were assessed as normally stunned, 30% of animals did not have cardiac activity and were considered dead, 5% of animals retained sensibility. Assessment of the condition of the internal organs, dynamics of pH changes, comparison of moisture holding capacity and color characteristics did not reveal substantial and statistically significant differences between slaughter products from normally stunned animals and animals died during stunning. The authors discuss mortality of animals before the beginning of bleeding as a possible cause of similar results of investigation of the internal organs and meat quality from animals with and without cardiac activity after gas stunning.
Highlights
Today in Russia, more than 50% of pigs sent to slaughter are subjected to gas stunning
The aim of this study was detection of possible deviations in quality of slaughter products depending on the physiological condition of Large White pigs after gas stunning
A degree of blood filling of the internal organs was classified as follows: — normal or insignificant: when pressing a tissue cut, blood does not appear, blood filling is visually observed on a tissue cut only in the individual areas; — medium: blood filling is visually detected on a tissue cut; when pressing a tissue cut, blood appears; blood vessels are filled with blood; — high: significant blood filling is visually detected on a tissue cut; blood runs out without pressing; blood vessels are significantly filled with blood
Summary
Today in Russia, more than 50% of pigs sent to slaughter are subjected to gas stunning This technological operation affects the physiological conditions of animals and can significantly contribute to formation of slaughter product quality, including pork in carcasses and by-products. When pigs are placed in a chamber with a concentration of 80–90% СО2, the loss of consciousness and sensibility is not instantaneous and occurs during 30 sec At such a high СО2 concentration, the duration of the anesthetic effect and unconsciousness of animals increases, and as a consequence, the time interval for performing other slaughter manipulations can be increased. At concentrations higher than 30%, this gas causes aversion in animals, irritation of the mucous membranes, painful sensations, lung hyperventilation and gasping before loss of consciousness [3] In several cases, these sensations can provoke the spontaneous development of stress in pigs up to cessation of cardiac activity. In the context of using stunning at slaughter, the main clinical signs of death are absence of breathing, absence of pulse and pupil dilation [2]
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