Optimizing Poultry Meat Quality Through Integrated Management and Genetic Interventions

Global demand for high-quality poultry meat has driven intensive genetic selection for fast growth and high breast yield, inadvertently increasing muscle myopathies (wooden breast and white striping), pale-soft-exudative (PSE)-like meat, and animal welfare issues. This review synthesizes recent literature on integrated management and genetic strategies to maximize poultry meat quality without sacrificing productivity or sustainability. Key management interventions include optimizing stocking densities, precise climate control, antibiotic alternatives (probiotics, organic acids), and advanced post-slaughter technologies (automated stunning and rapid chilling). These practices mitigate pre-slaughter stress, stabilize postmortem biochemical processes, and minimize microbial contamination. Concurrently, transitioning from growth-centric breeding to multi-trait genomic selection, utilizing marker-assisted selection, genomic selection, and CRISPR/Cas9, enables cumulative improvements in ultimate pH, intramuscular fat, and stress resilience. Integrating these disciplines through precision farming and digital technologies offers a holistic framework for producers, breeders, and policymakers to deliver consistent, ethical, and sustainable poultry products.