CARCASS CHARACTERISTICS AND MEAT QUALITY ATTRIBUTES OF RAMS MAINTAINED ON PROCESSED DEOILED MAHUA (BRASSICA-LATIFOLIA) SEED CAKE

Sixteen crossbred rams were allotted to four groups with four animals in each. Rams in the control group were supplied requisite quantity of standard ration consisting of maize 32%, groundnut cake 32%, wheat br an 33%, mineral mixture 2% and common salt 1%. All animals were offere d green fodder at the rate of 200 g and ad lib. wheat straw. Ten month s feeding was followed by slaughter studies. Slaughter weight, edible and nonedible offals of rams did not differ significantly among differ ent groups. A gradual decline tendency in dressed weight was not signi ficant. Carcass length (60.63 to 62.75 cm) was not influenced by the d ietary treatments. Higher (P < 0.01) dressing percentage was recorded in controls compared to experimental groups. Weight and percentage yie ld of wholesale cuts did not differ significantly. Leg and shoulder cu ts recorded higher proportion of lean meat than other cuts. Inclusion of deoiled mahua (Brassica latifolia) seed cake (DMSC), irrespective o f treatment decreased the fat content of different cuts. Differences i n salt-extractable proteins and nonprotein nitrogenous substances of m eat were significant (P < 0.05) among groups. There was an insignifica nt slight decrease in texture and bitterness in different groups. It w as evident that the feeding of DMSC results in leaner carcasses, as de sired by health-conscious people, and quality attributes of meat were not affected by the treatments. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V.