Abstract
Aim of study: To evaluate the effect of different diets on carcass characteristics and meat quality from Mos free-ranged cockerel.Area of study: Galicia (NW Spain).Material and methods: Cockerels (n=75) were allocated to 3 groups (n=25) according to finishing diets: commercial fodder (CF), 50% wheat and 50% corn (WH) and 33% wheat and 66% corn (CR). Meat quality was assessed in terms of physicochemical, and nutritional features.Main results: The highest live and carcass weight were obtained in CF group. Meat from CF and CR groups were similar in moisture, protein and cholesterol content in drumstick cut, meanwhile in breast piece there were no significant differences (p>0.05) in intramuscular fat (IMF), ash, and lightness (L*). On the other hand, finishing diet affected L* and redness (a*) values, showing the highest L* values in meat samples from CF treatment (49.94 for drumstick) (p<0.01), whereas a* was superior in WH samples (11.30 and 4.61, for drumstick and breast, respectively) (p<0.001). Meat shear force test was not affected (p>0.05) by diets. Finally, the finishing feed affected (p<0.05) the fatty acid and amino acid profile in both cuts (drumstick and breast).Research highlights: Present study allowed to characterize for the first time Mos cockerels fed with different diets. Some carcass features obtained were higher than previous studies with other Mos categories, and some autochthonous and industrial breeds. Meat from cockerels was characterized by a high protein percentage and lower IMF.
Highlights
The global food system has the challenge of feeding the population with rising demand for food minimizing its environmental impacts (FAO, 2010a)
Breast samples from commercial fodder (CF) group had significant (p
This value was greater than those obtained for Mos roosters slaughtered at 6 months (59.89%), 7 months (59.27%), 8 months (57.7%) and 10 months (58.17%) (Sánchez et al, 2005; Franco et al, 2012a, 2013, 2016). It was higher than those showed in other Spanish local breeds of slow growth such as Castellana Negra slaughtered at 7 months or Extremeña Azul slaughtered at 8 months (Miguel et al, 2008; Muriel Duran, 2014), as well as for industrial lines such as Sasso T-44 (56.01%) and Sasso X-44 (55.57%) (Franco et al, 2012a, 2016)
Summary
The global food system has the challenge of feeding the population with rising demand for food minimizing its environmental impacts (FAO, 2010a). This requires more efficient animal production systems and indigenous breeds to optimize the use of natural resources. The same yields as conventional farms, studies with local breeds will be necessary to know its performance and promote their production (Seufert et al, 2012). To promote the raise of indigenous chickens, on a large scale, it is necessary information on the carcass characteristics and meat quality to cover this specific niche market (Dyubele et al, 2010). The characteristics of raising methods commonly used for slow-grown chickens allow breeders to satisfy the consumer demands linked to terms such as organic, animal welfare and outdoor poultry
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