Prediction of the carcass tissue composition of “Blackbelly” lambs using in vivo and postmortem measurements

Abstract

Objective. Predict the tissue carcass composition of “Blackbelly” lambs using in vivo and postmortem measurements. Materials and methods. Twenty lambs with an average age and weight of seven months and 29.07±2.88 kg, respectively, were used. Before slaughter, the subcutaneous fat thickness, depth, width and Longissimus dorsi muscle area were measured with ultrasonography. After slaughter, the cold carcass and tissues: muscle, fat and bone weight, were recorded. In the carcass, the thoracic depth, length, perimeter, length and width of the leg, as well as the compactness index, were also measured and recorded. Correlation analysis and regression models were used to predict tissue carcass composition. Results. The carcass tissues were correlated with L. dorsi muscle depth (p≤0.05; r-values ranged from 0.67 to 0.80) and carcass compactness index (p≤0.05; r ranged from 0.54 to 0.75). The r2 for the prediction equations of the carcass tissue composition ranged from 0.71 to 0.78 for fat (p≤0.001). Conclusions. The use of in vivo and postmortem measurements allowed the prediction of tissue carcass composition of lambs, with moderate to high accuracy (r2 >0.71≤ and ≤0.78).