Prediction of lamb meat quality traits based on muscle biopsy fibre typing

The aim of the experiment described in this paper was to determine the relationship between muscle fibre type and meat quality. Two indicator muscles, the Stylohyoïdeus and the Scutulo auricularis superficialis accessorius, were biopsied on one-month-old lambs and used as an index to select the animals of the redder and of the whiter metabolic types among the lamb population studied. Evaluation of the organoleptic qualities of meats from two groups was performed on the Longissimus dorsi muscle by a taste panel. The results of the taste panel evaluation suggest, on one hand, that the meat from the redder animals is juicier and has a more intense flavour than that from the whiter. On the other hand, it appears possible to obtain an in vivo prediction of lamb meat quality based on muscle biopsy fibre typing.