SENSORY AND TECHNOLOGICAL MEAT QUALITY IN CARRIERS AND NONCARRIERS OFTHE RN- ALLELE IN HAMPSHIRE CROSSES AND IN PUREBRED YORKSHIRE PIGS

The effect of the dominant RN- allele on technological and sensory mea t quality of loin and ham from pigs, crossbred from Landrace x Yorkshi re sows and one Hampshire sire heterozygous for the RN- allele was stu died. The non-carriers of the RN- allele and the purebred Yorkshire pi gs were similar regarding most of the technological traits. In compari son with the RN- carriers, they had higher values for pH(u), Napole yi eld, dry matter and protein content, but lower values for drip loss, f ilter paper wetness, cooking loss, internal reflectance, residual glyc ogen and glycolytic potential, The three groups did not differ concern ing lactate content, intramuscular fat or ash content. Shear-force val ues did not differ between the two RN genotypes, but both genotypes ha d lower shear-force values than the purebred Yorkshire pigs. Non-carri ers had higher processing yield for cured cooked ham than RN- carriers . The RN- allele had little effect on the sensory attributes, as asses sed by a trained panel using a descriptive test, but there was a tende ncy to lower chewing time for meat from the crossbreds compared to the purebred Swedish Yorkshire. RN- carriers produced more acidic fresh l oin than non-carriers and purebred Yorkshire pigs, and juicier cured c ooked ham than non-carriers. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.