Abstract
Numerous reports have evaluated the predictive ability of carcass probes for meat quality using measurements taken early postmortem or near 24 h. The intervening time period, however, has been largely ignored. In this study, the capacity of three probes (pH, electrical conductivity (EC), and grading probe light reflectance (GP)) to predict pork longissimus muscle quality (drip and cooking losses, Warner-Bratzler shear, L*, n = 30) was evaluated at 45 min, 90 min, 3, 6, 12, 24, and 48 h postmortem. The strongest relationships were observed between cooking loss and 6 h EC and GP (R 2 = 0.66, 0.72), and L* and GP (R 2 = 0.57-0.66, 12-48 h). pH was most valuable early postmortem (R 2 = 0.63, 90 min with cooking loss). GP at 6 h most effectively (R 2 = 0.84) predicted a two factor (cooking loss+L*) meat quality index. Results emphasize the predictive value of measures taken between 3 and 12 h postmortem. (Asian-Aust. J. Anim. Sci. 2006. Vol 19, No. 2 : 266-272)
Highlights
Recognising that conditions immediately prior to slaughter have a major influence on ultimate pork quality (Tarrant, 1989), the New Zealand Pork Industry Board implemented, in 1993, the Pork Quality Improvement Process for abattoirs
Measurements of pH were determine cooking loss expressed as a percentage of raw made on the Longissimus lumborum on the right side at the sample weight
Intact myofibres perform as electrical insulators; in a postmortem environment of declining pH and ATP stores, the integrity of muscle cell membranes is compromised
Summary
Recognising that conditions immediately prior to slaughter have a major influence on ultimate pork quality (Tarrant, 1989), the New Zealand Pork Industry Board implemented, in 1993, the Pork Quality Improvement Process for abattoirs. Numerous reports have discussed the use of one, or a combination of, carcass probing methods that provide measures of pH (Warriss and Brown, 1987), electrical properties (Schmitten et al, 1987; Schwägele, 1991; Warriss et al, 1991), light reflectance (by grading probe), light scattering (by fibre optic probe; Lundström et al, 1987), stiffness (by rigorometer), and marbling for the prediction of pork quality (Oliver et al, 1991; Kauffmann et al, 1993; Joo et al, 2000) Most of these reports, have focussed on the relationships of early postmortem (45 min) and/or ultimate (20-24 h) probe values to meat quality with little information on measures during the intervening time gap. The objective of this study was to evaluate the capacity of three commercially available instruments (pH meter, electrical conductivity meter, and grading probe) to predict subsequent meat quality attributes by gathering predictive data at seven times over a two day postmortem period
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