Instrumental compression force and meat attribute changes in woody broiler breast fillets during short-term storage

Area of Science:

• Poultry Science
• Meat Science
• Animal Myopathies

Background:

• Woody breast (WB) is a broiler myopathy affecting Pectoralis major muscle, causing increased raw fillet hardness.
• This defect leads to significant economic losses due to reduced meat quality and challenges in manual defect identification.
• Current methods for identifying WB are labor-intensive and require skilled personnel.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate compression force (CF) as a non-invasive method for detecting woody breast (WB) in broiler fillets.
• To assess the impact of cold storage on meat attributes in relation to WB severity.
• To establish a reliable instrumental method for identifying WB in broiler meat.

Main Methods:

• 121 broiler fillets were categorized into normal, mild, and moderate/severe woody breast groups.
• Fillet weight, drip loss, and compression force (CF) were measured over 8 days of cold storage.
• Sarcomere length (SL) and gravimetric fragmentation index (GFI) were analyzed at specific storage intervals.

Main Results:

• Initial fillet weight, CF, drip loss, and SL increased with WB severity.
• Compression force showed a strong correlation (rs = 0.79) with WB severity.
• Meat attributes like CF, SL, and GFI decreased with storage time, while drip loss increased, with greater changes observed in severe WB fillets.

Conclusions:

• Increased woody breast severity is associated with higher compression force in broiler fillets.
• Compression force serves as a reliable instrumental tool for identifying woody breast.
• Meat softening during storage is influenced by moisture loss and myofibril proteolysis, particularly in severe WB cases.