Abstract
It was hypothesized that feeding mesquite pods to male Rambouillet lambs would have no negative effects on carcass characteristics, meat chemical composition and fatty acid composition of Longissimus thoracis et lumborum (LTL). Twenty-one male lambs (2.5 months old and 21 ± 1.44 kg bodyweight) were randomly assigned to one of three experimental diets, two of which replaced maize grain and stover with mesquite pods ( Prosopis laevigata ) (PL): 0 g PL/kg feed (PL0), 250 g PL/kg feed (PL250) and 500 g PL/kg feed (dry matter basis). The feeding trial lasted 72 days. Carcass traits, chemical composition, fatty acid profile, and sensory characteristics of meat were measured. Carcass linear dimensions, non-carcass components, digestive tract and offal, compression value, and chemical composition of meat were similar in all treatments. Dietary inclusion of PL decreased carcass shrinkage loss. Lambs fed PL500 had better muscle conformation and degree of fat. Meat produced by PL-fed lambs was well accepted by panellists who judged meat appearance, colour, flavour, juiciness, toughness, and stringiness. In lambs fed PL0, the LTL muscle was lighter and yellower than that of animals fed PL250 and PL500 diets. Fatty acid composition was altered. The PL0 diet resulted in lower percentages of total trans fatty acids (TFA) and saturated fatty acids (SFA) and higher percentages of most unsaturated fatty acids (UFA) and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) n-6 compared with PL250 and PL500 diets. Mesquite diets of up to 500 g/kg dry matter (DM) for growing lambs improved carcass quality and nutritional parameters of the meat. Keywords : Mesquite, muscle conformation, rumen content
Highlights
The major strategy for developing livestock industries in which production of grain is limited and cost is high should be to increase the use of low-cost indigenous feed resources to reduce the requirements for imported feed
The results showed that the PL0 diet resulted in higher concentrations of most saturated fatty acids (SFA), unsaturated fatty acids (UFA) and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) n-6 compared with PL-based diets consisting of 250 g (PL250) and PL500 diets
This study showed that high levels of mesquite pods do not have an adverse effect on carcass dressing and weight, carcass linear dimensions, carcass compactness indices and non-carcass components
Summary
The major strategy for developing livestock industries in which production of grain is limited and cost is high should be to increase the use of low-cost indigenous feed resources to reduce the requirements for imported feed. Mesquite pods have been evaluated as a potential feed ingredient for livestock in many species, including sheep (Mahgoub et al, 2005a; Mahgoub et al, 2005b; Obeidat et al, 2008; Obeidat et al, 2011). Most of these studies have shown that mesquite pods could replace conventional feeds without causing health problems or affecting growth performance in lambs. Mesquite (P. laevigata) pods replaced a third of conventional ingredients (grain, by-products or forage) in finishing lamb diets with no effect on growth performance (Negrete et al, 2016). High proportions of mesquite pods are safe for finishing lambs, but it is necessary to evaluate whether the effects of mesquite pods on performance and carcass characteristics affect meat characteristics
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