Abstract
Broiler meat quality depends on the interaction of several factors, including genotype, slaughter age/body weight, pre-slaughter handling, and slaughter method. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of slaughter weight on meat yield and quality of broilers. The material consisted of 42 broilers, classified into three groups: lighter ( 3000 g). The following meat yield parameters were measured: cold carcass weight, breast weight before and after deboning, breast skin and bone weights, thigh weight before and after deboning, thigh skin and bone weights, drumstick weight before and after deboning, and drumstick skin and bone weights. Meat pH (M. pectoralis major) and instrumental colour (breast and drumstick) were measured 24 h post-mortem. Meat quality classes (pale, soft and exudative and normal meat) were determined based on breast muscle L* value. Heavier broilers had higher (P 0.05) affected by slaughter weight. In conclusion, production of heavy broilers had a beneficial effect on meat quantity, while the effect of slaughter weight on meat quality was negligible.
Highlights
Modern livestock production aims to produce animals with high meatiness and good meat quality traits at the same time with minimum production cost (Adzitey and Nurul, 2011)
It is evident that heavier broilers had higher (P
Similar results were reported by other authors (Cahaner et al, 1986; Brake et al, 1993; Renema et al, 1999; Omojola et al, 2004), who found direct proportion between the weights of primal cuts and broiler slaughter weight
Summary
Modern livestock production aims to produce animals with high meatiness and good meat quality traits at the same time with minimum production cost (Adzitey and Nurul, 2011). The latest concerns about broiler meat quality are associated with deep pectoral muscle disease and white striping, which disrupt the appearance of the product and increases the problem of the meat’s poor ability to retain water during processing and storage as a result of the occurrence of pale, soft and exudative (PSE) meat (Barbut et al, 2008). This meat appearance and loss of protein quality are attributed to the denaturation of proteins caused by an excessively fast pH drop in combination with high muscle temperature within 30 minutes after slaughter (Massimiliano and Claudio, 2012). The aim of this study was to determine the effect of slaughter weight on meat yield and quality of broilers
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