M. C. Ielo

Shelf life of pork from five different quality classes.

A total of 117 loins were selected on the cutting line at 24h post-mortem to study the long term shelf life (35 days, 4 degrees C) of vacuum packaged pork from five different quality classes (PSE: pale, soft, exudative; PFN: pale, firm, non-exudative; RSE: red, soft, exudative; RFN: red, firm, non-exudative; and DFD: dark, firm, dry). The microbial load at 0 d was not significantly different (P>0.05) among the pork quality classes, indicating that the initial microflora was influenced by the dressing conditions at the plant, not by the meat quality class. But after 35 d of storage, total aerobic mesophilic and presumptive lactic acid bacteria counts were higher (P<0.05) in DFD pork due to its higher ultimate pH. RSE was the second quality class most susceptible to spoilage, whereas PFN, RFN and PSE pork had similar microbial loads. Further research is needed to elucidate the causes of the shorter shelf life in RSE pork.

Effects of dietary level of pantothenic acid and sex on carcass, meat quality traits and fatty acid composition of thigh subcutaneous adipose tissue in Italian heavy pigs

Two trials were carried out to evaluate the effects of i) supranutritional doses of pantothenic acid (PA) and ii) sex on carcass, meat quality and fatty acid (FA) composition of subcutaneous adipose tissue in Italian heavy pig. In trial 1, 59 Duroc x (LxLW) pigs were fed the same diet containing either 10 [in the control (C) group] or 110 ppm [in the treatment (T) group] PA, from 107 to 168 kg live weight. At slaughtering, forty carcasses were sampled randomly. The T carcasses had lower backfat thickness (P<0.05), lower incidence of adipose cuts (P<0.05), higher lean cuts percentage (63.09 vs 60.64%; P<0.01) and lean meat yield (P<0.07). In trial 2, 42 pigs [Dumeco Cofok x (LxLW)], evenly divided into three groups, were fed the same feed containing respectively 10 (C), 60 (T1) and 110 ppm (T2) PA, from 95 to 165 kg live weight. The treatment lowered total adipose cuts yield (P<0.05) and increased lean/adipose cuts ratio (P<0.07). In the outer layer of thighs subcutaneous adipose tissue, the treatment raised polyunsaturated FA content (P<0.01), unsaturation coefficient (P<0.01) and polyunsaturated/saturated (P/S) FA ratio (P<0.05). In the inner layer, the treatment led to a lower saturated FA (P<0.05) and higher polyunsaturated FA content (P<0.01). In both trials, females generally provided leaner carcasses. In neither trials, vitamin level affected meat quality. Thus, feeding high levels of PA to heavy pigs can yield more valuable carcasses without affecting meat quality. However, effects on FA composition suggest caution in adopting this practice in the Italian heavy pig production.

Iodine Value and Fatty Acids Determination on Pig Fat Samples by FT-NIR Spectroscopy: Benefits of Variable Selection in the Perspective of Industrial Applications

In this work, FT-NIR spectroscopy was employed to determine iodine value (IV) and fatty acids (FA) content of pig fat samples, through the combined use of signal preprocessing, multivariate calibration, and variable selection methods. In particular, the main focus was on the use of variable selection methods, both in order to improve the predictive performance of the calibration models, and to identify relevant wavelengths that could be subsequently used for the development of simple, fast, and cheap hand-held devices, able to measure IV and FA content directly on the fat without the need of any sample pretreatment. Firstly, for each property of interest, partial least squares (PLS) multivariate calibration models were calculated considering the whole spectral range and testing different signal preprocessing methods. Then, once chosen the optimal signal preprocessing method, a two-step variable selection procedure was applied. In the first step, the interval-PLS variable selection algorithm was used to calculate a set of calibration models, whose outcomes were considered altogether in the second step, in order to select the optimal calibration model. The variable selection procedure allowed to lower the number of spectral variables retained by the model, and often led to an increase of the performance in prediction of the external test set samples.

Preliminary investigation of the use of digital image analysis for raw ham evaluation

Abstract In order to find objective parameters for the evaluation of pig thighs to be used for PDO processing, digital images of the external surface of 384 left thighs were acquired, to be used for multivariate image analysis. The following parameters were also measured on the same samples: weight, length, circumference, thickness of fat and thigh, globosity index and colour of skin. Moreover, a subjective evaluation of veining and red skin defects was also made by an expert assessor. Multivariate analysis of the digital images showed a separation of the analysed samples in two clusters, whose differences were then investigated on the basis of the other traits. Various differences between the two clusters where found, mainly for the size-related parameters.

Effect of Dietary Pantothenic Acid Supplementation on Meat and Carcass Traits in the Heavy Pig

Recent studies conducted on pigs slaughtered at around 120 kg (Stahly and Lutz, 2001; Autrey et al., 2002) indicate that increasing dietary panthotenic acid to doses higher than currently recommended levels (NRC, 1998) may favourably modify carcass composition, leading to an increase in the percentage of lean tissue, a larger cross sectional area of the l.dorsi muscle and a consequent reduction in adipose tissue, without negatively impacting meat quality parameters. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of supplementing diets with high doses of pontothenic acid, in excess of currently recommended levels, on the production of heavy pigs intended for the pork processing industry.

Effect of stunning voltage and scalding method on the incidence of the “red skin” defect of Parma ham

Effect of stunning voltage and scalding method on the incidence of the “red skin” defect of Parma ham D. P. Lo Fiego & M. Comellini & M. C. Ielo & F. Tassone & L. A. Volpelli # Springer Science + Business Media B.V. 2009

Effect of the slaughterhouse on the incidence of defects in raw pig ham destined to the dry-curing process

Effect of the slaughterhouse on the incidence of defects in raw pig ham destined to the dry-curing process L. Nanni Costa & F. Tassone & M. Comellini & M. C. Ielo & D. P. Lo Fiego & V. Russo Published online: 7 August 2008 # Springer Science + Business Media B.V. 2008

Effect of pantothenic acid level in the diet of the finishing heavy pig on carcass and meat quality traits

Abstract This study investigated the effect of vitamin B5 dietary level on carcass and meat quality characteristics in the heavy pig. To this aim, 42 pigs, 21 gilts and 21 barrows, of similar weight and age, evenly divided into 3 groups of 14 subjects each, were fed, from approx. 95 kg live weight (lw) till slaughtering (around 165 kg lw), the same basal diet containing either 10 (control, C), or 60 (T1), or 110 ppm (T2) pantothenic acid. At increasing dietary levels of vitamin B5, only numerical improvements of lean meat and lean cuts percentages were observed, whereas total adipose cuts, backfat and jowl percentages decreased (P<0.05). Ham characteristics and meat quality traits, such as colour, pH, intramuscular fat and protein contents, were not affected by the dietary treatment.

Effect of different pre-slaughter procedures on behavioural and blood parameters in pigs

Abstract The effect of different pre-slaughter procedures on behavioural and blood parameters were evaluated on 120 pigs reared in one farm and delivered in groups of 40 subjects to three slaughterhouses. Due to the different attitude of the personnel involved, differences in handling were evident at loading and at unloading where the difficulties to drive the pigs increased the behavioural events. Blood analysis parameters showed that different resting time did not reduce the physical stress experienced by the pigs, which seems related “per se” to loading, transport and unloading and not to the different handling applied in each slaughter plant.

Development of a predictive equation for the subcutaneous fat thickness of pig thighs.

Development of a predictive equation for the subcutaneous fat thickness of pig thighs D. P. Lo Fiego & P. M. Falcone & M. C. Ielo Published online: 7 August 2008 # Springer Science + Business Media B.V. 2008