Correlation of pork technological indicators

Abstract

Pig farming in Lithuania is one of the major livestock industries. Of all the meats, pork consumption by quantities is the second largest in the world. Competition drives pork processors to provide highest quality pork for market, because consumers demand high quality healthy meat, and reduced consumption of meat causes great losses to the meat industry. The study was carried out at the Lithuanian Veterinary Academy, in the Laboratory of the evaluation of meat characteristics of livestock and meat quality. The study included 30 meat samples from the Lithuanian White, Landrace, Large White and Yorkshire breeds of swine from the longest back muscle between the 12th and the last rib. After 48 hours after the control slaughter, the laboratory investigated the pH of meat, meat water content, water holding of meat and meat hardness. After the analysis of the study data the following conclusions were made: 1. Yorkshire breed pig meat pH was by 0.07, or 1.30 percent (p<0.05) higher than Landrace, water holding of meat of the Yorkshire breed was 0.56 percent higher than the Large White, 0.82 percent higher than the Lithuanian White and 1.64 percent higher than Landrace. Water holding of Landrace breed meat was lower by 0.05 or 0.93 percent (p<0.05) than the average rates. Hardness of the Landrace breed meat was higher by 0.04 kg/cm2 or 2.34 percent than the Large White, 0.01 kg/cm2 or 0.58 percent than the Lithuanian White and Yorkshire breeds of swine. Moreover, the water content of Landrace swine was 0.39 percent higher than the Lithuanian White, 0.79 percent than the Yorkshire and 0.59 percent than the Large White breed. 2. Strong correlation of meat indicators of different breeds of pig has been observed between the water holding and hardness of Yorkshire breed pig meat 0.409 (p<0.05), water content and hardness of Large White breed pig meat 0.461 (p<0.05), water content and water holding 0.503 (p<0.01), also a strong negative correlation was found between the Lithuanian White pig breed meat pH and hardness of -0.403 (p<0.05). 3. Under all tested meat technological indicators of all varieties of pig meat, the moderate dependence was found between the meat pH and water content -0.249 (p<0.01). Statistically significant impact of a variety of meat was found for pH 5.9 percent (p<0.05), sex impact on meat hardness 3.4 percent (p<0.05) and breed x sex impact on meat pH – 8.5 percent (p<0.05). 4. Statistically significant pH differences for different breeds of pig meat were identified between different varieties of large white gilts’ and geldings’ meat pH. Gilt meat pH was lower by 0.15 or 2.85 percent (p<0.01) than of geldings. Yorkshire breed pig meat hardness was 0.28 kg/cm2, or 15.30 percent (p<0.05) higher than of the same breed geldings. 5. According to the mean technological indicators of meat of all varieties of tested gilts and geldings, a statistically significant difference was observed between the meat hardness of gilts and geldings. Gelding meat was harder than that of gilts by 0.14 kg/cm2 or 7.91 percent (p<0.05)