Effects of various pre-slaughter conditions on pig carcasses and meat quality in a low-input slaughter facility

The aim of this study was to determine the effects of gender, slaughter weight, stocking density, lairage time and season on carcass and meat quality parameters in a low-input production system. The study was conducted on 400 slaughter pigs (200 barrows and 200 gilts) with live weight of 115.0 ± 4.70 kg. Barrows had higher slaughter and carcass weights, fat thickness and lower meatiness. Heavier pigs had higher hot and cold carcass weights, fat thickness, lower meatiness, and higher incidences of pale, soft and exudative (PSE) and dark, firm and dry (DFD) meat. Low stocking density during transportation increased skin lesion score, pH45 value and the incidence of DFD meat; while high stocking density decreased pH45 value and increased T45 value and the incidence of PSE meat. Long lairaging reduced slaughter weight, carcass weight, dressing percentage and backfat thickness and increased skin lesion score. After overnight lairaging, pH45 value and the incidence of DFD meat became higher. After short lairaging, the pH45 value was lower, while the incidence of PSE meat increased. Pigs slaughtered in winter had the highest slaughter weight, backfat thickness, pH45 value and incidence of DFD, and the lowest meatiness. Pigs slaughtered in summer had the lowest slaughter and carcass weights and pH45 value, and the highest incidence of PSE meat. In conclusion, gender influenced carcass quality, slaughter weight and lairage time, and season affected carcass and meat quality, while stocking density had an impact on meat quality.Keywords: DFD meat, gender, lairage time, low-input slaughter system, PSE meat, season, slaughter weight, stocking densit

The interactive effects of transportation and lairage time on welfare indicators, carcass and meat quality traits in slaughter pigs

This study assessed the effects of transportation and lairage time and their interaction on welfare, carcass and meat quality traits in slaughter pigs under commercial conditions. The study was conducted on 120 pigs with a live weight of approximately 115 kg and about six months old. A complete blood picture was measured in pigs to assess preslaughter stress. Also, nine different carcass quality parameters including live weight, hot and cold carcass weights, cooling loss, dressing percentage, backfat thickness, meatiness and skin lesions score were measured. The pH and temperature measurements were performed 45 minutes post-mortem. The results showed that short transportation time and slaughtering without lairaging and long transportation time and overnight lairaging negatively influenced the hematological parameters, which meant that the animal welfare was seriously compromised under these pre-slaughter conditions. Long transportation time and overnight lairaging reduced live and carcass weights and increased the incidence of skin lesions on the carcass and DFD pork. In addition, short transportation time and slaughtering without lairaging caused a significant deterioration in pork quality. It can be concluded that, from the standpoint of animal welfare, carcass and meat quality, the above-mentioned pre-slaughter conditions are not recommended to the farmers and/or pork producers

Effects of various pre-slaughter conditions on pig carcasses and meat quality in a low-input slaughter facility

The aim of this study was to determine the effects of gender, slaughter weight, stocking density, lairage time and season on carcass and meat quality parameters in a low-input production system. The study was conducted on 400 slaughter pigs (200 barrows and 200 gilts) with live weight of 115.0 +/- 4.70 kg. Barrows had higher slaughter and carcass weights, fat thickness and lower meatiness. Heavier pigs had higher hot and cold carcass weights, fat thickness, lower meatiness, and higher incidences of pale, soft and exudative (PSE) and dark, firm and dry (DFD) meat. Low stocking density during transportation increased skin lesion score, pH(45) value and the incidence of DFD meat; while high stocking density decreased pH45 value and increased T-45 value and the incidence of PSE meat. Long lairaging reduced slaughter weight, carcass weight, dressing percentage and backfat thickness and increased skin lesion score. After overnight lairaging, pH(45) value and the incidence of DFD meat became higher. After short lairaging, the pH45 value was lower, while the incidence of PSE meat increased. Pigs slaughtered in winter had the highest slaughter weight, backfat thickness, pH(45) value and incidence of DFD, and the lowest meatiness. Pigs slaughtered in summer had the lowest slaughter and carcass weights and pH(45) value, and the highest incidence of PSE meat. In conclusion, gender influenced carcass quality, slaughter weight and lairage time, and season affected carcass and meat quality, while stocking density had an impact on meat quality

Process hygiene of pig carcasses in one large-scale slaughterhouse in the west of Serbia, during 48 months

This study was conducted to determine microbial contamination of pig carcasses during four years in one slaughterhouse. The numbers of total viable counts and Enterobacteriaceae and the presence/absence of Salmonella spp. are the process hygiene criteria for pig carcasses. We collected 240 samples from April of 2015 to April of 2019, with swabs being continually taken from the carcasses of pigs every month for 48 months in slaughterhouse in the west of Serbia. Over 48 consecutive months of testing, Salmonella spp. presence was detected on 1.67% of the pig carcasses, while the determined mean numbers of Enterobacteriaceae were 0.18 +/- 0.37 log CFU/cm(2), and the mean total viable count of aerobic bacteria was 1.88 +/- 0.85 log CFU/cm(2). The process hygiene criteria results for the tested pig carcasses showed that for total viable count of aerobic bacteria, 95.35% of carcasses fell into the satisfactory process hygiene group, while 4.17% belonged to the acceptable group. Enterobacteriaceae numbers showed 97.90% of the tested pig carcasses belonged to the satisfactory process hygiene group, and 2.10% of carcasses belonged to the acceptable group

Primena i provera sistema bezbednosti hrane

Historically, assuring that food is safe to eat included food inspection and laboratory testing of end product. Modern, nowdays food safety assurance system is designed to address potential food safety problems before they actually appear and at points of the food chain where they are expected to appear. In paper is discussed about the implementation and assessment of the Food Safety Management System

Carcass characteristics and meat quality of broilers fed on earthworm (Lumbricus rubellus) meal

ΔΕΝ ΔΙΑΤΙΘΕΤΑΙ ΠΕΡΙΛΗΨΗThe aim of the research was to evaluate the carcass characteristics and meat quality from chickens fed on diets in which fish meal was substituted with raw earthworms (Lumbricus rubellus) or earthworm meal. In the trial which lasted 42-days, 100 one-day-old Hybro broilers were divided into the control and three experimental groups. The control group was fed on standard broiler feed, the first (E-I) and the second experimental groups (E-II) were fed a diet in which 50% or 100% of fish meal was substituted with earthworm meal, respectively, whilst the third group (E-III) consumed feed without fish meal, but was given raw chopped earthworms ad libitum from day 1 to day 42. The replacement of fish meal with fresh earthworms resulted in significantly lower carcass weights in the E-III group in comparison with the control group (p<0.05). The differences in drumstick, thigh and breast meat share relative to the carcass mass were not significant (p>0.05). The lowest fat content in thigh and breast meat was in the group in which fish meal was replaced with earthworm meal. The lightness (L*) of thigh and breast meat was highest in the broilers fed fresh earthworms ad libitum. No significant differences in pH value were detected between the experimental groups (p>0.05). The most consumer acceptable were drumstick samples from E-II group and the least acceptable samples from the control group. Earthworm meal may be considered an adequate substitute for fish meal in broiler chickens’ diet since it does not impair the production performance, carcass yield and meat quality

Carcass characteristics and meat quality of broilers fed on earthworm (Lumbricus rubellus) meal

The aim of the research was to evaluate the carcass characteristics and meat quality from chickens fed on diets in which fish meal was substituted with raw earthworms (Lumbricus rubellus) or earthworm meal. In the trial which lasted 42-days, 100 one-day-old Hybro broilers were divided into the control and three experimental groups. The control group was fed on standard broiler feed, the first (E-I) and the second experimental groups (E-II) were fed a diet in which 50% or 100% of fish meal was substituted with earthworm meal, respectively, whilst the third group (E-III) consumed feed without fish meal, but was given raw chopped earthworms ad libitum from day 1 to day 42. The replacement of fish meal with fresh earthworms resulted in significantly lower carcass weights in the E-III group in comparison with the control group (p lt 0.05). The differences in drumstick, thigh and breast meat share relative to the carcass mass were not significant (p>0.05). The lowest fat content in thigh and breast meat was in the group in which fish meal was replaced with earthworm meal. The lightness (L*) of thigh and breast meat was highest in the broilers fed fresh earthworms ad libitum. No significant differences in pH value were detected between the experimental groups (p>0.05). The most consumer acceptable were drumstick samples from E-II group and the least acceptable samples from the control group. Earthworm meal may be considered an adequate substitute for fish meal in broiler chickens' diet since it does not impair the production performance, carcass yield and meat quality

The influence of pre-mortem conditions on pale, Soft and Exudative (PSE) and Dark firm and dry (DFD) pork meat

The aim of this study was to determine the effect of gender, stocking density in the transport vehicle, lairage time and season on the incidence of skin lesions on pig carcasses and PSE and DFD meat. Skin lesions on carcasses (480, in total) were assessed according to the Welfare Quality® protocol (2009). The pH and temperature measurements were performed 45 minutes after slaughter. The group of carcasses with skin lesions score 2 had significantly higher incidence of PSE and DFD meat compared to the groups of carcasses with skin lesions score 0 and 1. With regard to gender, there were no differences in meat quality parameters, as well as for the incidence of skin lesions and PSE and DFD meat. The results showed that a space allowance lower than 0.3 m2/100 kg and higher than 0.5 m2/100 kg pig had a detrimental effect to animal welfare and meat quality. Lairage time affected meat quality parameters, incidence of skin lesions score and PSE and DFD meat, where after long lairaging (> 17 h) mean pH45 and t45 values became significantly higher, as well as the incidence of skin lesions and DFD meat. After short lairaging (< 1 h) mean pH45 value became significantly lower, while mean t45 value and the incidence of PSE meat became significantly higher. A significantly higher number of skin lesions on the carcass were observed in winter compared to all other seasons. High temperatures during summer and low temperatures during winter had a negative influence on meat quality parameters and incidence of PSE and DFD meat