Livestock farming, high-quality cheese and territory

L’agricoltura e la produzione di cibo, nel contesto globale attuale, devono fare fronte a importanti sfide, quali la salvaguardia della qualità dell’ambiente, il cambiamento climatico, la salute pubblica e la stabilità economica. Il passaggio verso un’agricoltura più sostenibile permetterebbe ai territori di continuare a produrre cibo senza compromettere la disponibilità di risorse per le comunità future, garantendo inoltre condizioni eque per i produttori. A Reggio Emilia, diverse sono le produzioni di eccellenza, non solo nel settore strettamente alimentare ma anche nella ricerca in ambito agricolo e nella meccanica agricola. La città, aperta alla dimensione internazionale, ospita la Scuola Autunnale Internazionale sull’Agricoltura sostenibile “Alla ricerca di terre e cibi di qualità” nell’ambito del progetto EXPO in RE: AgricoltuRE per la sostenibilità, l’energia e il nutrimento. Obiettivo della scuola, organizzata da Regione Emilia Romagna e Comune di Reggio Emilia, è di promuovere il dibattito e la formazione internazionale su agricoltura, sostenibilità e territorio, accogliendo a Reggio Emilia rappresentanti istituzionali (del governo, delle province, degli enti locali), agenzie di promozione e marketing, università, imprese, centri di ricerca dai paesi target. I focus riguardano approcci, tecniche, scambi di esperienze e possibili collaborazioni sui fattori chiave della produzione agricola: - Acqua e suolo come risorse: valorizzazione, risparmio, sostenibilità. - Produzioni sostenibili e di alta qualità: allevamento sostenibile come fattore chiave per la qualità dei prodotti, impatto ambientale e benessere animale. Il lavoro presentato in questo contesto si focalizza sul concetto di sostenibilità ambientale degli allevamenti zootecnici, con particolare riferimento agli allevamenti di bovine da latte. Vengono presentate le filiere di due tipologie di formaggio Parmigiano Reggiano di alta qualità e strettamente legate ai territori di origine: da bovine di razza Reggiana e da bovine di razza Modenese

Improving the post-harvest quality of fruits during storage through edible packaging based on guar gum and hydroxypropyl methylcellulose

Fruits are particularly susceptible to post-harvest decay. In this context, bio-based coatings could be a useful andsustainable approach to overcome this problem. The EU Commission is very restrictive about food additives andmaterials in contact with food, regulated respectively by Reg. UE (CE) 1333/2008 and Reg. UE (CE) 10/2011. Inthis research, different percentages of hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (H)-guar gum (G) (1–2% w/v) and po-tassium sorbate (PS) (0–2% w/v) were used to produce coatings to be applied on tomatoes (Solanum lycopersi-cum) and oranges (Citrus sinensis). The efficacy of the coatings was firstly evaluated through an accelerated test(28 ◦C 90% RH, 20 days) on artificially wounded fruits, and then under storage conditions (8 ◦C 95% RH, 6weeks). The physical and chemical parameters of the fruits were periodically analyzed and used to evaluate theeffect of the coatings on the fruit quality through a multivariate approach (PCA). All coatings were effective inpreserving fruits under refrigeration against Penicillium spp. and Alternaria spp., but PS led to significant fruitweight loss despite its strong fungistatic activity. Biopolymers showed potential for preserving fruit freshness, butalternative antifungal agents without adverse weight effects should be explored using a similar statisticalapproach. (16) (PDF) Improving the post-harvest quality of fruits during storage through edible packaging based on guar gum and hydroxypropyl methylcellulose. Available from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/374295352_Improving_the_post-harvest_quality_of_fruits_during_storage_through_edible_packaging_based_on_guar_gum_and_hydroxypropyl_methylcellulose#fullTextFileContent [accessed Oct 06 2023]

Use of multivariate image analysis for the evaluation of total mixed rations in dairy cow feeding

Multivariate image analysis was applied for the evaluation of total mixed rations (TMR) used in dairy cow feeding. The estimation of the correlations between images and chemical-physical traits of TMR was performe

Effect of ageing time on consumer-perceived quality of Italian Simmental beef

The aim of the experiment was to provide an objective indication on the optimal ageing time of meat from ItalianSimmental (IS) young bulls, the most important commercial category of the breed. The research was carried out on 10young bulls slaughtered at the average weight of 688 kg (SE: 7.3 kg). The right side of each carcass was stored for 7days and the left one for further 7 days, at normal refrigeration temperatures. At the end of the ageing period, the sideswere sampled at the loin for meat pH, color, cooking loss and shear force measurement. A central location, affective testinvolving 74 consumers was carried out to measure the degree of liking for grilled beef aged 7 or 14 days.The pH and color parameters were not significantly affected by the duration of post-mortem storage, while cooking lossincreased (31.4 vs 32.6 %; P<0.05) and shear force values diminished (56.7 vs 46.8 N; P< 0.01) when ageing timeincreased from 7 to 14 days. The degree of liking by the untrained respondents for the two types of cooked meat wasdifferent, considering that consumers gave the highest hedonistic scores to beef aged 14 days. Tenderness was the sensoryattribute that allowed the best discrimination between beef stored for periods of different length. In fact, while thedifference between 14-day-aged and 7-day-aged beef for flavour ratings (7.0 vs 6.9) did not reach the threshold of significance,the former meat was perceived as significantly finer than the latter regarding tenderness (6.5 vs 5.6; P= 0.01)and marginally preferred in overall terms (6.9 vs 6.5; P= 0.07). The classification test, carried out at the end of the quantitativetest by asking consumers to select from a list the most appropriate attributes describing the stimuli associatedwith meat consumption, confirmed the effectiveness of texture attributes in ranking different-aged beef acceptability. Infact, the number of ticks reported for chewiness and juiciness descriptors were different for the two types of meat: the14-day-aged beef was perceived as easier to chew (57 vs 34 ticks) and juicier (42 vs 24) than the shortest-aged beef.Ageing for 14 days should be recommended as a process control point for the beef industry to improve consumer acceptanceof IS young bull beef

Quality traits of fallow deer (Dama dama) dry-cured hams

Su prosciutti ricavati da cosce disossate di daini di due diverse età (18 e 30 mesi) e tenuti al pascolo con o senza integrazione alimentare, sono stati analizzati: composizione centesimale, acidi grassi, sale, indice di proteolisi, Texture Profile Analysis. I dati qualitativi evidenziano poche variazioni fra le 4 classi di animali e sono indici diun prodotto di elevato interesse nutrizionale

An application of Z-Box method in dairy cow feedingto estimate the relationships among peNDF, otherfeed variables and productive data

Physically effective NDF (peNDF) is defined as the fraction of fibrethat stimulates chewing and contributes to the floating mat oflarge particles in the rumen, and consequently to its regular activity.PeNDF is calculated from a physical effectiveness factor (pef),varying from 0 (NDF stimulates no chewing) to 1 (max chewing),which may be obtained by laboratory-based particle sizing techniques,such as Penn State Particle Separator, Mertens Separator,Z-Box, Cut Accuracy Test, based on the proportion of DM retainedon sieves (by horizontal or vertical shaking). We chose Z-Boxmethod, thanks to its easy use and applicability to as-is feed andtotal mixed rations (TMR), and we are trying to obtain an estimatingequation which may predict milk fat content and/or other productivedata from peNDF and other variables measured on TMR.To this aim, samples of TMR collected from several farms aresieved (3 sub samples each), and undergo proximate analysis,NDF, ADF, ADL and starch. Milk yield, milk fat, water addiction toTMR are collected on farm; qualitative data such as type of forage,breed, season, geographical origin and altitude (plain/hill/mountain)are also taken into account, to estimate their possible effect.As a first step, in order to investigate the complex relationshipsexisting among this wide set of variables, Principal ComponentAnalysis (PCA) is used as a data exploration tool. Two PCA models(presence of silage or not in TMR) are calculated separately. Foreach PCA model, the overall correlations among all the consideredvariables and their relative importance are investigated by meansof the loadings plots, posing particular attention to the correlationswith peNDF and with milk fat. Moreover, it is also possible to identifyhow the different groups of samples depend on specific variables

Effect of milk feeding system on carcass and meat quality of Frisa Valtellinese kids.

Sedici capretti di razza Frisa Valtellinese sono stati allattati naturalmente (N) ocon sostituto del latte (A) e macellati a circa 17 kg di peso. L’alimentazione artificiale ha prodotto un aumentodella resa lorda di macellazione (45,6 vs.. 48,6% per N e A), a causa soprattutto del minor contenuto dell’apparatodigerente. Il sistema di allattamento ha avuto una scarsa influenza sulla resa in tagli, mentre la carcassadei capretti A ha mostrato un maggior rivestimento adiposo (stato d’ingrassamento: 3,5 vs.. 2,2 punti). I principaliparametri di qualità della carne (pH finale, colore, perdite alla cottura, resistenza al taglio, analisi tipo)non sono stati modificati dalla dieta; tuttavia la carne dei capretti allattati naturalmente è risultata più riccadi C18:3 e C20:5, con un più favorevole rapporto n-3/n-6 (0,77 vs. 0,45)

Meat quality of Italian Simmental young bulls as affected by the genes frequency of Montbéliarde origin

The aim of the research was the evaluation of carcass and meat quality traits of Italian Simmental young bulls, and their relationship with the degree of inclusion of genes of Montbéliarde origin

The Green Era of Food Packaging: General Considerations and New Trends

Recently, academic research and industries have gained awareness about the economic, environmental, and social impacts of conventional plastic packaging and its disposal. This consciousness has oriented efforts towards more sustainable materials such as biopolymers, paving the way for the “green era” of food packaging. This review provides a schematic overview about polymers and blends of them, which are emerging as promising alternatives to conventional plastics. Focus was dedicated to biopolymers from renewable sources and their applications to produce sustainable, active packaging with antimicrobial and antioxidant properties. In particular, the incorporation of plant extracts, food-waste derivatives, and nano-sized materials to produce bio-based active packaging with enhanced technical performances was investigated. According to recent studies, bio-based active packaging enriched with natural-based compounds has the potential to replace petroleum-derived materials. Based on molecular composition, the natural compounds can diversely interact with the native structure of the packaging materials, modulating their barriers, optical and mechanical performances, and conferring them antioxidant and antimicrobial properties. Overall, the recent academic findings could lead to a breakthrough in the field of food packaging, opening the gates to a new generation of packaging solutions which will be sustainable, customised, and green

Natural complementary feeds in gestating and lactating sows: effects on performance and metabolic profile

Gestating and lactating sows were fed natural complementary feed with the aim to improve performance and metabolic profil