Development of meat and carcass quality characteristics in Iberian pigs reared outdoors

A study of age-related changes in carcass traits and meat quality character istics of Longissimus dorsi (LD) and Biceps femoris (BF) of free-ranged Ibe rian pigs was carried out to check whether the slaughter age used in the tr aditional management system of Iberian pigs is adequate. There was a great increase in live and carcass weight during fattening, principally due to an increase in fat deposition, as could be deduced from the percentage of dis sectible fat and the backfat thickness. However, intramuscular fat in LD an d BF showed only slight changes during the fattening. Myoglobin content ten ded to increase throughout lifetime in both muscles, whereas water-holding capacity decreased in intermediate ages and showed the highest values in th e oldest animals. Total collagen content did not vary during lifetime; on t he other hand, insoluble collagen increased from 7 to 77% of total collagen . It can be concluded that the traditional management system of Iberian pig s can be improved by fattening the pigs at a younger age, without negative consequences on the meat quality. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.