The effects of fat thickness and sex on pig meat quality with special reference to the problems associated with overleanness 2. Laboratory and trained taste panel results

Abstract

1986). The effects of fat thickness and sex on pig meat quality with special reference to the problems associated with overleanness 2. Laboratory and trained taste panel results. ABSTRACTEvaluations of meat quality were made of 300 carcasses, of average weight 58 kg, falling into three fatness groups, 8, 12 and 16 mm for P 2 fat thickness. There were equal numbers of entire males and gilts. An increase in fat thickness was associated with an increase in the firmness of loin and shoulder backfat, a reduced incidence of fat separation and changes in the composition of both muscle and backfat: the concentration of lipid increased and that of water decreased, more markedly in backfat. In addition, the concentration of collagen in backfat decreased. The loin joint was visually most attractive when P 2 was 11 mm, attractiveness decreasing below and particularly above this value. Eating quality of grilled chops was assessed in a representative subsample of 96 pigs falling into the 8-mm and 16-mm P 2 categories. The only statistically significant difference observed between these extremes of fat thickness was in juiciness which was lower in the leaner pigs; the correlation between juiciness score and m. longissimus lipid concentration ('marbling fat') was 0-31. Juiciness did not influence the assessment of overall eating quality which showed no association with fatness. Entire males of similar backfat thickness to gilts (12 mm P 2 ) had a higher concentration of water and lower concentration of lipid in backfat and slightly softer backfat. There were no differences in eating quality, or in the presence of abnormal odours or flavours, between entire males and gilts. These results confirm those obtained in butcher and consumer panel tests in the same carcasses.

Effects of age/weight and castration on fatty acids composition in pork fat and the qualities of pork and pork fat in meishn x large white pigs.

“…With the exception of odour and juiciness, there was no effect of gender on other sensory attributes. Similar reports of no differences in juiciness and sometimes tenderness between boar and other genders were made by many authors [9,10,25]. Fatness could be responsible for castrates being juicier than boars.…”

“…The unsaturated fatty acid fraction of backfat is higher in entire males than in castrates [4,8]. Higher concentrations of water and unsaturated fatty acids in the adipose tissue of entire males make their fat softer [4,9], which results in the problem of fat separation from the muscle in lean entire males [6,10,11] causing poor processing qualities with higher susceptibility to oxidative rancidity [4,12,13].…”

Influence of obesity gene in quantitative traits of swine

“…These results are similar to those described by Upnmoor (1997) and Sellier (1995), emphasizing a significant negative correlation between meat quantity and quality, i.e., the higher the percentage of meat, the worse its quality. This conclusion is supported by Wood et al (1986), who found less juice in leaner animals.…”

Distribution of intramuscular fat content and marbling within the longissimus muscle of pigs

“…Better sensory quality scores resulted from increased concentration of intramuscular fat (IMF) in the muscle. However, many other studies have not found any consistent relationship between carcass fatness and pork eating quality (Wood et al 1986;Prusa et al 1989;Eikelenboom et al 1996). This discrepancy could be due to differences in the sampling location, given the high variability reported in the distribution of IMF along the longissimus muscle, which is the muscle conventionally used for the evaluation Can.…”