The use of halothane gas to identify turkeys prone to developing pale, exudative meat when transported before slaughter

Abstract

Halothane screening has been used in the swine industry to identify animals susceptible to stress and prone to developing pale, soft, exudative (PSE) meat. This study evaluated the ability of halothane to identify stress-susceptible turkeys prone to developing PSE meat when reared to market age and transported before slaughter. Male Nicholas turkeys (n = 1,286) were exposed to 3% halothane for 5 min at 4 wk of age in two trials. Birds were classified as halothane sensitive (HAL+) or halothane nonresponder (HAL−), in which HAL+ birds showed signs of muscle rigidity in the legs upon removal from halothane gas, and HAL− birds showed no stiffness response. Approximately 3.5% (45) of the turkeys were HAL+. All HAL+ birds and an equal number of HAL− birds were grown until 20 wk of age. Immediately prior to slaughter, all birds were transported in coops on a flatbed trailer for 2 h and then immediately slaughtered upon arrival at the processing plant. Breast muscle pH (0, 1.5, and 24 h postmortem) and L* value (1.5 h and 24 h postmortem) were measured on the fillets. Drip loss and cook loss were also determined on marinated and nonmarinated breast fillets from each carcass. There were no significant mean differences in any parameter measured between the HAL+ and HAL− turkeys. However, the HAL+ turkeys had a greater percentage of fillets with L* values >51 compared with the HAL− turkeys. These results suggest that either halothane response is only a limited predictor of PSE meat in turkeys or that transportation is not an appropriate stressor to induce the PSE condition.