Journal
POULTRY SCIENCE
Volume 91, Issue 6, Pages 1454-1464Publisher
ELSEVIER
DOI: 10.3382/ps.2011-01520
Keywords
broiler; cold stress; breast and thigh meat quality
Categories
Funding
- Natural Science and Engineering Research Council (NSERC, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada)
- Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (Ottawa, Ontario, Canada)
- Saskatchewan Chicken Industry Development Fund (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada)
- Alberta Farm Animal Care (Calgary, Alberta, Canada)
- Chicken Farmers of Saskatchewan (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada)
- Alberta Chicken Producers (Edmonton, Alberta, Canada)
- Poultry Industry Council (Guelph, Ontario, Canada)
- Lilydale Foods Inc. (Edmonton, Alberta., Canada)
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The effect of acute cold exposure was assessed on broiler physiology, breast and thigh muscle metabolites, and meat quality. In total, 160 male birds at ages of 5 and 6 wk were exposed to temperatures of -9 to -15 degrees C (cold stressed) and +20 degrees C (control) in a simulated transport chamber for 3 h before slaughter followed by 0 or 2 h of lairage. Bird physiology parameters, including core body temperature, live shrink, blood glucose, and muscle temperature, were assessed. Core body temperature was monitored every minute using i-Button data loggers, and live shrink and blood glucose were assessed. Total glucose and lactate concentrations at 30 h postmortem, as well as ultimate pH (pH(u)), color, and water-holding attributes were evaluated on pectoralis major muscle of breast and iliotibi-alis muscle of thigh. Birds were grouped based on their microclimate temperature to control and cold-stressed groups (0 to -8, -8 to -11, and -11 to -14 degrees C). Significant (P < 0.05) decreases in core body temperature and breast and thigh muscle temperatures were observed at simulated transport temperatures below 0 degrees C. In addition, higher (P < 0.05) live shrink and lower blood glucose values were observed as a result of 3-h exposure to temperatures below 0 degrees C, exacerbated as temperature decreased further below -8 degrees C. Thigh muscle was almost depleted of glycogen reserve compared with a significant but small reduction in breast muscle glycogen when exposure temperature was below -8 degrees C. Similarly, much greater effects were observed on thigh pH(u) and quality attributes compared with breast. In addition, 84% incidence of the dark, firm, dry quality defect was observed in thigh meat (pH(u) > 6.4, L* < 44) compared with 42% incidence of dark, firm, dry in breast meat (pH(u) > 6.1, L* < 46) when transportation temperature was below 0 degrees C. Results of this study showed that thigh muscle was affected more severely than breast muscle by exposure to cold temperatures before slaughter.
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