Qualitative composition of purebred and crossbred lamb fat

Abstract

The physical and chemical properties and structure of lamb fat are derived from the qualitative composition and content of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids. Higher levels of saturated fatty acid in sheep fat increase the melting point and yield a solid lard. Characteristic fat deposition in the carcass of young sheep is closely related to meat productivity and nutritional value of mutton. The paper presents the results to prove the influence of the genotype of purebred Tsigai rams and their crosses from the Romanov, Texel and Edilbay rams. Crossbred young animals of all genotypes are proved to have an increased content of polyunsaturated fatty acids. The amount of lipids in intramuscular fat in crossbred Romanov rams is 1.68% more, Texel – 13.97% and Edilbay – 21.79%, while the cholesterol content is lower by 1.47%, 6.35% and 5.21%, respectively.