The effect of gender and slaughter weight on loin and fat characteristics of pigs intended for Teruel dry-cured ham production
Keywords:
fat, gender, loin, slaughter weight, Teruel dry-cured ham
Abstract
A total of 200 Duroc × (Landrace × Large White) pigs intended for Protected Designation of Origin Teruel dry-curedham manufacture was used for the study. The objective was to investigate the effect of gender (barrows and gilts) and
slaughter weight (SW; 120, 125, 130, 135 or 140 kg) on Longissimus dorsi (LD) muscle characteristics and the fatty acid (FA) profile of the subcutaneous fat. The LD from barrows had higher intramuscular fat (P<0.01), b* value (P<0.01),
colour intensity (P<0.01 for c* and P<0.05 for Hº) and tenderness (P<0.05) than the LD from gilts. Fat from barrows had a higher saturated FA content (P<0.01) a lower polyunsaturated (P<0.001) and unsaturated FA content (P<0.01) than fat from gilts. On the other hand, intramuscular fat was increased (P<0.05) but moisture and L* (P<0.05), thawing (P<0.001) and cooking losses (P<0.01) decreased as SW increased. Polyunsaturated FA content decreased (P<0.001) and saturated FA proportion tended to increase (P<0.10) as the SW increased. It was concluded that barrows and gilts were adequate for both fresh meat and dry-cured ham production. An increase in SW from 120 to 140 kg impairs subcutaneous fat quality but improves some loin characteristics which are desirable for Teruel dry-cured pork production.
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How to Cite
Latorre, M. A., Ripoll, G., García-Belenguer, E., & Ariño, L. (1). The effect of gender and slaughter weight on loin and fat characteristics of pigs intended for Teruel dry-cured ham production. Spanish Journal of Agricultural Research, 7(2), 407-416. https://doi.org/10.5424/sjar/2009072-1648
Issue
Section
Food science and technology
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