Meat Quality and Animal Welfare Summary

  • Meat Quality: Defined as either eating quality (palatability) or processing quality; influenced by breed, age, gender, physiological status, biochemistry of the muscle, fat, and connective tissue.

  • Components of Meat Quality (Warriss, 1996):

    • Yield and gross composition: Determines the saleable product amount; higher carcass proportion relative to live weight is desirable.
    • Appearance and technological characteristics: Influenced by muscle microstructure affecting color and water holding capacity (WHC); desirable meat is light-colored with low exudate.
    • Palatability: Key traits include texture, juiciness, and flavor; tender meat is preferred; undesirable odors may indicate spoilage.
    • Wholesomeness: Freedom from pathogens, hazardous chemicals, and nutritional benefits (proteins, vitamins).
    • Ethical quality: Demand for humane treatment of animals throughout their lifecycle.

  • Influences on Meat Quality:

    • Pre-slaughter Stress: Factors like handling, transportation, and lairage lead to issues such as toughness, juiciness loss, and undesirable color due to glycogen depletion influencing pH.
    • Animal Age: Younger animals tend to produce more tender meat.
    • Breed: Certain breeds yield more marbling and tenderness; rapid maturation often results in better quality.

  • Tenderness and Water-holding Capacity: Affects consumer perception and acceptance; tender meat necessitates lesser force (Warner–Bratzler shear force test) to cut.

  • Meat Color: Consumer acceptance is influenced by color, which is determined by myoglobin levels and pH; darker meat associated with higher pH and lower consumer preference (Dark Firm Dry - DFD meat).

  • Fatty Acids and Health: Meat's healthiness is correlated with its fatty acid composition; higher omega-3 fatty acids in beef may pose health benefits, found lower in meat from extensive farming systems.

  • Ways to Improve Meat Quality: Focus on hygiene during production, palatability through handling, postmortem aging,
    and appropriate nutritional strategies for livestock management.

  • Conclusion: Consumer perception of meat quality is heavily influenced by tenderness, flavor, and color, all of which can be optimized through improved animal management practices pre and post-slaughter.