Effect of the type of diet on muscle characteristics and meat palatabilityof growing Salers bulls

The effect of the type of diet (hay vs grass silage) on body composition an d characteristics and palatability of semitendinosus (ST) and longissimus t horacis (LT) muscles of 16 month old Salers bulls fed at the same energy le vels were studied. Animals fed hay had a lower daily weight gain and carcas s weight and were leaner. There were no significant differences in the prop ortions of fibre types in the ST or LT due to diet. ST muscle of hay fed an imals had a lower oxidative metabolism, but contained similar amounts of to tal and type I collagen and greater amounts, and proportions of soluble col lagen and of type III collagen, than those of animals fed grass silage. ST muscles of hay-fed animals were more tender than those of silage-fed animal s. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.