Abstract
Aim of study: Beef quality is mainly affected by finishing feeding (FF) and production system (PS). The effects of PS (extensive, semi-extensive, traditional and intensive systems) and FF from Rubia Gallega calves were compared in terms of meat quality.Area of study: Galicia (NW Spain)Material and methods: Calves (n=10 per treatment) were slaughtered at nine months of age and meat samples were assessed in terms of meat quality attributes such as physicochemical, nutritional and sensory analysis performed by a trained panel.Main results: Meat chemical composition varied (p<0.01) with PS and FF. The semi-extensive system showed the lowest values (p<0.05) for cooking loss (22.8%) and for shear force (26.0 N) while the extensive system presented the lowest contents of saturated fatty acids (SFA) and the highest contents of linolenic acid (p<0.001). The SFA and polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) contents varied with FF (p<0.05). The lowest and highest values for SFA and PUFA were displayed in extensive group finished with Pasture/Concentrate, meanwhile feedlot group finished with Concentrate/Straw showed and opposite trend. The n-6/n-3 ratio was lower than 4 for extensive and semi-extensive systems (p<0.001). In addition, tenderness and juiciness showed significant differences mainly due to FF.Research highlights: This study showed that meat of calves reared in extensive systems was the healthiest, regarding total fat and fatty acid composition. It can be concluded that finishing feeding, and PS affected meat quality. Hence the potential usefulness of these results is to improve meat quality and safety according to market demands.
Highlights
Several factors impact beef meat quality; among those, production systems (PS) and diet stand out by having an important influence (Mennecke et al, 2007; Dunne et al, 2009); In addition, consumers are increasingly concerned about the influence of PS on diet, welfare and, on meat quality
Results obtained showed that finishing feeding (FF) had a great influence on veal meat quality, while PS had a minor effect on most parameters evaluated
The fatty acid profile from calves reared in extensive and semi-extensive systems agree with the range of values proposed by the nutritional recommendations of the international organizations
Summary
Several factors impact beef meat quality; among those, production systems (PS) and diet stand out by having an important influence (Mennecke et al, 2007; Dunne et al, 2009); In addition, consumers are increasingly concerned about the influence of PS on diet, welfare and, on meat quality. Calves are reared with their dams, having access to pasture and can be supplemented with concentrate or silage during the last months before slaughter. In this PS, cattle are well adapted to environment and can use natural resources through grazing, minimizing production costs. Traditional systems are based on rearing small herds of cattle with calves weaned at around 7 months of age. The intensive system is based on feedlots, where calves are fed ad libitum using commercial concentrates supplemented with straw (Guerrero et al, 2013) or with silage combined with straw
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