Consumer acceptability of beef from two sexes supplemented with essential oil mix

Essential oils are natural extracts from plants which can be included in cattle diets as an alternative to additives, such as ionophores, to improve the shelf life of meat. The aim of this study was to evaluate the sensory acceptability of meat from 57 crossbred (1/2 Angus–1/2 Nellore) animals of different sexes [heifers n = 30, and young bulls n = 27], finished in feedlot with isoenergetic and isonitrogenous diets, which differed in the level of supplementation (0.0, 3.5 or 7.0 g/animal/day) with a commercial mix of essential oils (Mixoil®) from seven plants: oregano, garlic, lemon, rosemary, thyme, eucalyptus and sweet orange. The Longissimus thoracis muscle, aged for 24 h, was evaluated by 120 consumers who scored tenderness acceptability, flavour acceptability and overall acceptability using a hedonic 9-point scale. The inclusion of essential oils affected tenderness acceptability and flavour acceptability (P ≤ 0.01), with a tendency (P < 0.10) for overall acceptability. Meat from heifers was more appreciated by consumers than that from young bulls in all attributes (P ≤ 0.001), however, different groups of consumers had different preferences. The inclusion of a mix of essential oils in beef diets was well accepted by consumers, and could improve the acceptability of meat from young bulls, when is added at a concentration of 3.5 g/animal/day during the last 4 months of fattening.

Influencia del cruce industrial en los rendimientos productivos y la calidad de la canal de corderos de la raza ovina Segureña

<p>Se han estudiado los rendimientos productivos (peso al nacimiento, peso al sacrificio, y ganancia media diaria), así como los parámetros de calidad de la canal (conformación, engrasamiento, índices de compacidad de la canal y de la pierna, y composición tisular) de corderos provenientes de la raza Segureña y del cruce industrial de ésta con la raza Texel. Se han observado mejoras en los animales cruzados, tanto en la productividad: mayor peso al nacimiento y al sacrificio y una mayor ganancia media diaria de peso, como en la calidad de la canal: mejor conformación, menor engrasamiento, y una mayor composición muscular en contraposición a un menor porcentaje de grasa. Los resultados obtenidos indican que el cruce entre estas dos razas podría ser una herramienta recomendable a desarrollar y utilizar en determinadas explotaciones y especificaciones de producción.</p>

Effect of the type of dietary fat when added as an energy source on animal performance, carcass characteristics and meat quality of intensively reared Friesian steers

The effects of different fats in the diet were evaluated on the basis of animal performance, carcass and meat-quality traits. Four groups of eight Friesian steers were intensively finished with concentrate and cereal straw given ad libitum. Four different types of fats were included at a 4% level in the diet, namely, palm oil, sunflower oil, tallow and hydrogenated fat. The feeding trial lasted for 84 days. There were no differences on animal performance or carcass characteristics, except for animals from the hydrogenated-fat diet, which had the greatest percentage of muscle and moisture, and the lowest percentage of fat in a 6th rib dissection. Meat colour, texture, lipid oxidation and consumer acceptability did not differ among the diets. Nevertheless, the effects of ageing or display time were more important than those of the source of fat. Intramuscular fatty acid profile was hardly influenced by the fat source. In conclusion, the type of fat added at the final stage of the rearing process, at a 4% of inclusion level, did not produce noticeable variations on productive parameters or product quality. This would allow to formulate rations for cattle, using the most profitable source of fat (added at low levels), without having variability on the product quality.

Effects of fatty acids on meat quality: a review

Interest in meat fatty acid composition stems mainly from the need to find ways to produce healthier meat, i.e. with a higher ratio of polyunsaturated (PUFA) to saturated fatty acids and a more favourable balance between n-6 and n-3 PUFA. In pigs, the drive has been to increase n-3 PUFA in meat and this can be achieved by feeding sources such as linseed in the diet. Only when concentrations of α-linolenic acid (18:3) approach 3% of neutral lipids or phospholipids are there any adverse effects on meat quality, defined in terms of shelf life (lipid and myoglobin oxidation) and flavour. Ruminant meats are a relatively good source of n-3 PUFA due to the presence of 18:3 in grass. Further increases can be achieved with animals fed grain-based diets by including whole linseed or linseed oil, especially if this is "protected" from rumen biohydrogenation. Long-chain (C20-C22) n-3 PUFA are synthesised from 18:3 in the animal although docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6) is not increased when diets are supplemented with 18:3. DHA can be increased by feeding sources such as fish oil although too-high levels cause adverse flavour and colour changes. Grass-fed beef and lamb have naturally high levels of 18:3 and long chain n-3 PUFA. These impact on flavour to produce a 'grass fed' taste in which other components of grass are also involved. Grazing also provides antioxidants including vitamin E which maintain PUFA levels in meat and prevent quality deterioration during processing and display. In pork, beef and lamb the melting point of lipid and the firmness/hardness of carcass fat is closely related to the concentration of stearic acid (18:0).

Effect of lairage on lamb welfare and meat quality

The study analysed the effect of lairage on some indicators of welfare and meat quality in lambs. Forty-eight lambs were divided into two treatments: T1 without lairage and T2 with 12 h of lairage. Blood samples were collected at slaughter to analyse cortisol, lactate, glucose, creatinine kinase, non-esterified fatty acid, white blood cells, red blood cells, haematocrit and ratio of neutrophil : lymphocytes. Meat from the M. longissimus was analysed in terms of pH 24 h post-mortem, water-holding capacity, texture and colour. Sensory analyses were performed by a trained panel. Lairage had a significant effect on stress response, but had no effect on haematological variables. The lambs with a lairage period before slaughter (T2) had significantly (P ≤ 0.001) lower values of cortisol at the time of slaughter. A similar result was observed for lactate and glucose, with T1 lambs showing significantly (P ≤ 0.05) higher values than T2 lambs. The creatinine kinase activity and non-esterified fatty acid concentrations were highest in T2 lambs (P ≤ 0.05). Instrumental and sensory meat quality were not affected, with the exception of water-holding capacity and some meat colour indicators. The water-holding capacity was significantly higher for T2 (P ≤ 0.05), while T1 lambs had a higher yellow index (P ≤ 0.05) and hue (P ≤ 0.05). The results obtained in this study suggest that animals will be less stressed at the time of slaughter with an overnight lairage compared with slaughter on arrival at the abattoir. While stress at the time of slaughter can influence meat quality, these changes were small and always within the normal commercial range.

Fatty acid and vitamin E composition of intramuscular fat in cattle reared in different production systems

The aim of this study was to evaluate the fatty acid composition of intramuscular fat and the vitamin E content of beef from different production systems. Four cattle production systems were used: cattle reared under intensive conditions and fed concentrate (INT1) from Spain, cattle raised at pasture and supplemented with concentrate (SUP1) from the United Kingdom, cattle raised at pasture and on corn silage (SUP2) from Germany and cattle reared under extensive conditions slaughtered at two and three years old (EXT2 and EXT3) from Uruguay. The highest proportion and content (mg per 100g of muscle) of linoleic acid (C18:2n-6) and arachidonic acid (C20:4n-6) and the lowest saturated fatty acids (SFA) was found in INT1 beef. In contrast, beef reared under extensive conditions showed the highest proportion and content of linolenic acid (C18:3n-3), docosapentaenoic acid (DPA, C22:5n-3) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, C20:5n-3), and SUP1 and SUP2 beef showed the highest level of palmitic acid (C16:0) and SFA. Beef from intensive system (INT1) had the lowest P/S (PUFA/SFA) ratio, whereas beef from extensive system (EXT2 and EXT3) had the lowest n-6/n-3 ratio. The results of the PCA (principal components analysis) of fatty acid composition showed that beef from intensive system (INT1) was clearly differentiated from the other meats and was located with the C18:2n-6 and C20:4n-6 and the n-6/n-3 ratio. EXT2 and EXT3 beef were located with C18:3n-3 and long chain fatty acids. Beef from extensive systems had the highest concentration of vitamin E (3.91mg α-tocopherol/kg muscle).

Urachus fistula: a rare first presentation of diverticulitis

Urachus fistulas are rare, especially in adulthood. In grown-ups urachus fistulas are usually a reflection of Crohn's disease. We present a patient in whom an urachus fistula was the first presentation of diverticulitis of the sigmoid colon. The need for proper preoperative diagnostic imaging is discussed.

Identifying market segments in beef: Breed, slaughter weight and ageing time implications

In this paper we propose a method to learn the reasons why groups of consumers prefer some beef products to others. We emphasise the role of groups since, from a practical point of view, they may represent market segments that demand different products. Our method starts representing people's preferences in a metric space; there we are able to define a kernel based similarity function that allows a clustering algorithm to identify significant groups of consumers with homogeneous likes. Finally, in each cluster, we developed, with a support vector machine (SVM), a function that explains the preferences of those consumers grouped in the cluster. The method was applied to a real case of consumers of beef that tasted beef from seven Spanish breeds, slaughtered at two different weights and aged for three different ageing periods. Two different clusters of consumers were identified for acceptability and tenderness, but not for flavour. Those clusters ranked two very different breeds (Asturiana and Retinta) in opposite order. In acceptability, ageing period was appreciated in a different way. However, in tenderness most consumers preferred long ageing periods and heavier to lighter animals.