Abstract
Plants with high levels of antioxidant compounds have been used to feed animals and increase stability of their meat and meat products. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of Chenopodium ambrosioides infusion on carcass, meat and burger quality. Rabbits were assigned to each treatment (0, 5 or 10 g.L-1 of Chenopodium ambrosioides). Animals were slaughtered after 28 days of fattening, after which carcass and meat quality was measured, and the meat obtained was processed into burgers. Results indicate that all variables measured were not significant, except for dissectible fat, pH, adhesiveness, L* value, and initial total plate counts in burgers. It is concluded that Chenopodium ambrosioides infusion could be used to feed rabbits, acquire meat, and use the meat for processing burgers, which have low bacterial growth and low oxidation development.
Highlights
Rabbit meat has been considered as a functional food due to its nutritional properties (Dalle-Zotte & Szendrö, 2011)
Lipid oxidation has a negative impact on flavor, color, texture and the nutritional value of meat and meat products (Trebušak et al, 2014; Shah et al, 2014)
Ethanolic or methanolic extracts obtained from grapefruit, ginger, peppermint and other plants have been used on meat products to inhibit lipid oxidation (Shah et al, 2014)
Summary
Rabbit meat has been considered as a functional food due to its nutritional properties (Dalle-Zotte & Szendrö, 2011). Meat processing uses ingredients to provide suitable sensorial and functional characteristics, such as antioxidants (Sebranek, 2009). Some of these additives have been under scrutiny due to their toxicity (Movileanu et al, 2013). The use of antioxidants as additives in animal feed has improved the shelf life of meat products, mainly decreasing lipid oxidation (Qwele et al, 2013), and natural sources of antioxidants should be used to offer healthier meat products (Kumar et al, 2015). Bioactive compounds produced by plants have antibacterial or antioxidant properties (Hashemi & Davoodi, 2011), and it is for this reason that several plants, either in their complete form or as extracts, have been used to feed rabbits (Dalle-Zotte et al, 2016). Aromatic plants have bioactive compounds with medicinal properties which can lead to an improvement in performance and increased meat quality (Kovitvadhi et al, 2016)
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