Effect of Allium hookeri and whey powder in diet of pigs on physicochemical characteristics and oxidative stability of pork

Abstract

The objective of this study was to determine the effect of Allium hookeri supplementation with whey powder in pig diet on meat quality, oxidative stability and sensory characteristics of Longissimus dorsi muscle samples. A total of 60 pigs were randomly assigned into the following three groups (four replicate pens per group with five pigs per pen): CON group, basal diet; AH, dietary supplementation with 10 g A. hookeri/kg feed and AHW, dietary supplementation with 5 g A. hookeri/40 g whey powder/kg feed. Proximate composition of muscle sample was not significantly affected by A. hookeri supplementation. On average, the AHW group showed higher pH but less cooking loss than the CON group. However, the AH and AHW groups had lower (p < .05) collagen content and shear force than the CON group. Retardation of lipid oxidation was significantly higher in the AH compared to that in the CON group. However, fatty acid compositions were not significantly affected by A. hookeri or whey powder supplementation, the exceptions were the C18:0 and C18:3n − 3 that showed the highest and the C20:3n − 3 the lowest proportions in the AH group. The AH group exhibited higher free amino acid contents such as Glu, Asn, Thr, Arg, Tyr, Ile and Leu than the AHW or CON group. However, sensory characteristics were not significantly affected by supplementation with A. hookeri or whey powder. These findings demonstrate that A. hookeri might be a promising supplement for pigs diet to improve meat oxidative stability without negatively compromise the nutritional properties and sensory quality.