The effect of dietary Echium oil supplementation on the fatty acid profile, omega-3 fatty acid content and subcutaneous fat quality of pork

Abstract

This study evaluated the effect of five dietary oils - palm (Control), soya, linseed, fish and Echium oil at a 1% inclusion level- on growth performance, feed efficiency, subcutaneous fat quality and fatty acid composition of subcutaneous fat. The trial consisted of 60 gilts, randomly allocated to ten groups with six animals per pen. Dietary treatment had no significant effect on growth performance, feed efficiency or lean meat content of pigs. All colour parameters, extractable fat content, fat free dry matter, and moisture content of subcutaneous fat were unaffected by dietary treatment. The only significant difference for fat firmness was between the control treatment containing palm oil (Bergafat HPL 106) and the linseed oil treatment (P = 0.049), with the control producing the hardest fat. The iodine value was significantly lower in the control treatment (P < 0.001). Both the Echium and linseed oil treatments increased the ratio of polyunsaturated fatty acid:saturated fatty acid (PUFA:SFA) and decreased the omega-6:omega-3 (n-6:n-3) ratio of subcutaneous fat. Stearidonic acid concentration of subcutaneous fat was the highest (P < 0.001) for the Echium oil treatment (0.21%). The fish oil treatment had significantly higher levels (P < 0.001) of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), docosapentaenoic acid (DPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and total EPA+DPA+DHA than all other treatments. The Echium oil treatment resulted in significantly (P < 0.001) higher EPA, DPA and EPA+DPA+DHA levels in subcutaneous fat than the linseed oil, soya oil and control treatments. The result suggests that Echium oil can be used in pig diets to improve the long chain n-3 fatty acid content of subcutaneous fat.