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Enhancing pork loin quality attributes through genotype, chilling method and ageing time
Manuel Juárez1, William R Caine, Ivy L Larsen
1Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Lacombe Research Centre, 6000 C & E Trail, Lacombe, Alberta, Canada T4L 1W1.
Meat Science
|April 27, 2010
Summary
Post-mortem ageing significantly enhances pork loin tenderness and flavor, with Duroc pigs yielding superior quality meat. Different chilling methods had minimal impact on sensory attributes, highlighting ageing as key for improving pork quality.
Area of Science:
- Meat Science
- Animal Science
- Food Technology
Background:
- Optimizing pork quality is crucial for consumer satisfaction and market competitiveness.
- Post-mortem ageing and chilling regimes are known factors influencing meat characteristics.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the effects of different chilling methods (conventional vs. blast-chilling) and post-mortem ageing durations on pork quality.
- To compare the meat quality attributes between Large White (LW) and Duroc breeds.
Main Methods:
- Pork loins from LW and Duroc barrows were subjected to either conventional or blast-chilling.
- Meat sections were aged for 2, 7, or 14 days at 2°C.
- Objective measurements (purge loss, drip loss, color, protein content) and sensory evaluations were performed.
Main Results:
- Blast-chilled meat exhibited lower purge and drip losses and higher hue values compared to conventionally chilled meat.
- Duroc pork had lower moisture, higher intramuscular fat, and superior sensory attributes (tenderness, juiciness, palatability, flavor) than LW pork.
- Ageing increased purge loss, color values (L*, hue, chroma), and protein content, while decreasing drip loss and moisture. Tenderness significantly improved with extended ageing.
Conclusions:
- Post-mortem ageing is a highly effective method for enhancing pork loin tenderness and overall quality, irrespective of the chilling method used.
- Breed significantly impacts pork flavor, likely due to differences in intramuscular fat content, while ageing primarily influences tenderness.
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