Animal performance and meat characteristics in steers reared in intensive conditions fed with different vegetable oils

Abstract

Enhancing the quality of beef meat is an important goal in terms of improving both the nutritional value for the consumer and the commercial value for producers. The aim of this work was to study the effects of different vegetable oil supplements on growth performance, carcass quality and meat quality in beef steers reared under intensive conditions. A total of 240 Blonde D' Aquitaine steers (average BW = 293.7 ± 38.88 kg) were grouped into 24 batches (10 steers/batch) and were randomly assigned to one of the three dietary treatments (eight batches per treatment), each supplemented with either 4% hydrogenated palm oil (PALM) or fatty acids (FAs) from olive oil (OLI) or soybean oil (SOY). No differences in growth performance or carcass quality were observed. For the meat quality analysis, a steer was randomly selected from each batch and the 6th rib on the left half of the carcass was dissected. PALM meat had the highest percentage of 16:0 ( P < 0.05) and the lowest n-6/n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) ratio ( P < 0.05), OLI had the highest content of t 11-18:1 ( P < 0.01) and c 9,t 11-18:2 ( P < 0.05) and SOY showed the lowest value of monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) ( P < 0.001), the highest percentage of PUFA ( P < 0.01) and a lower index of atherogenicity ( P = 0.07) than PALM. No significant differences in the sensory characteristics of the meat were noted. However, the results of the principal component analysis of meat characteristics enabled meat from those steers that consumed fatty acids from olive oil to be differentiated from that of steers that consumed soybean oil.

Review and Analysis of Alternatives for the Valorisation of Agro-Industrial Olive Oil By-Products

“…These authors agree that the addition of moderate amounts of oil by-products to the diets of dairy goats has favourable effects on milk FA composition from the point of view of the human consumer, without negative effects on animal performance. Research also demonstrates a change in fat profile in meat similar to that mentioned in milk, both in ruminants [18,30,31] and Iberian crossbred pigs [24] and also in fish [18].…”

“…A significant change is shown in the composition of goat milk with increased levels of OC in the diet. A commonly reported finding is that contents of milk fat and milk total solids, as well as milk yields, increase under an OC diet, with a reduction in saturated FAs and an increase in monounsaturated FAs compared to the control [20,30,32]. These authors agree that the addition of moderate amounts of oil by-products to the diets of dairy goats has favourable effects on milk FA composition from the point of view of the human consumer, without negative effects on animal performance.…”

“…More specifically, the aim is to reduce the content of medium-chain saturated fatty acids (MCSFAs), which have a hypercholesterolemic effect, and increase the FAs considered beneficial, such as polyunsaturated FAs of the n-3 series and rumenic acid (cis-9, trans-11 18:2) [28,29]. Sources of polyunsaturated FAs include oilseeds and also low-quality olive oil ('lampante' oil) [30]. As the previous section describes, olive by-products can provide an alternative to primary feed (grains or fodder), in line with the guiding principles of the circular economy and bioeconomy.…”

Opportunities for the Bioeconomy of Olive Oil Byproducts

“…Goat milk shows a significant change in milk composition with increase, with a common result showing that contents of milk fat and milk total solids, as well as their yields, increased in the OC die with a reduction on less saturated fatty acids (FA) and more monounsaturated FA than the control, Castro et al [5], Gomes et al [12] and Molina-Alcaide et al [11]. The mentioned authors agree with the conclusion that the addition of moderate amounts of oil byproducts to the diets of dairy goats has favorable effects on milk fatty acid composition from the point of view of the human consumer, without negative effects on animal performance.…”

“…The source for these polyunsaturated FA acids has been suggested to be oilseeds (sugarbeet, lineseed) and their oils. Furthermore, low quality olive oil has been also used as a source of polyunsaturated FA Castro, Cabezas et al [5]. Intensive dairy goat, sheep and cow milk production in the Mediterranean basin is based on imported conventional ingredients to be included in concentrates.…”