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Causes for variation in pork quality.

P G van der Wal1, B Engel, B Hulsegge

  • 1DLO Institute for Animal Science and Health (ID-DLO), PO Box 65, 8200 AB Lelystad, The Netherlands.

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Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

A longer resting period before slaughter improves pork quality by lowering meat temperature and increasing pH. However, muscular contractions during stunning negatively impact meat quality, reducing water-holding capacity.

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Area of Science:

  • Animal Science
  • Food Science
  • Meat Science

Background:

  • Pork quality is influenced by pre-slaughter conditions.
  • Standardized slaughter conditions minimize variation but still allow for observable effects.
  • Understanding factors affecting meat quality is crucial for the pork industry.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the impact of pre-slaughter resting period and muscular contractions on pork quality.
  • To identify specific factors influencing meat quality parameters like pH, temperature, and color.
  • To correlate animal behavior with ultimate pork quality.

Main Methods:

  • Slaughter of 260 pigs under highly standardized conditions.
  • Measurement of meat quality parameters (temperature, pH, color) at specific post-mortem times.
  • Observation and recording of muscular contractions during stunning, shackling, and exsanguination.

Main Results:

  • A longer resting period before slaughter led to lower meat temperatures and slightly higher ultimate pH, resulting in darker pork color.
  • Muscular contractions during stunning, shackling, and exsanguination negatively affected pork quality, increasing pH drop, rigor mortis, and reducing water holding capacity.
  • No correlation was found between animal behavior (at fattening station or in resting pen) and ultimate pork quality.

Conclusions:

  • Pre-slaughter resting duration is a significant factor in achieving desirable pork quality traits.
  • Minimizing muscular contractions during the stunning process is critical for maintaining pork quality.
  • Standardized slaughter protocols can reveal subtle but significant impacts of handling on meat characteristics.