Fatty acids composition of Colonnata Lard from two different swine breeds

Abstract

The study compares the fatty acid composition of the Colonnata lard obtained from two different swine breeds, Large White (LW) and Cinta Senese (CS), during a one year long curing period. Samples of backfat were obtained from the carcass of three animals per breed and disposed into six different marble boxes according to the procedure of the disciplinary production of PGI “Lardo di Colonnata”. During curing period individual lard samples were collected monthly from each marble box. The fatty acid composition of pig backfat reflected the differences in the dietary regimen and in the rearing system of the two breeds. LW swine, in fact, were fed a commercial concentrate and reared in an intensive system, whereas CS swine were fed a diet composed by a commercial concentrate supplemented with acorn and reared in an outdoor system. Lard from LW contained higher amount of saturated fatty acids than lard from CS, whereas the content of unsaturated fatty acids (mainly monounsaturated fatty acids) was lower. During the curing period the trend of lard fatty acids composition was different in the two breeds: the lard from CS seemed to be more susceptible to a faster hydrolysis of fatty acids than lard from LW, especially for the monounsaturated fatty acids, while the lard from LW seemed to be more susceptible to a faster hydrolysis of PUFA n-3.