| Abstrakt: |
Use of agroindustrial by-products in the feed of animals should be analyzed for better understanding of their impacts on cattle meat quality. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of the dietary inclusion of lipid-based diets on the sensory properties. The study was performed on a farm in Aguaí, SP, Brazil. A group of 39 uncastrated Nellore cattle was enclosed in individual pens. The animals were 36 mo old, and the initial mean live weight was 494.1 ± 10.1 kg. Animals were randomly assigned to one of three treatments, based on dry matter: feed with control diet 2.50% cottonseed (CD), feed with 11.50% cottonseed (CS), and feed with 3.13% cottonseed added of 1.77% protected lipid (PL). After 63 d mean final live weight was 577.01 ± 11.34 kg. Then, part of the M. longissimus thoracisof each animal was removed between the 12th and 13th rib of the left half carcass. The samples steaks were 2.5 cm thick and were stored frozen in a freezer at −18°C. Sensory analysis was performed after samples were thawed in the refrigerator (± 20 h at 2.5 ± 0.5°C) and heated on automatic superposed grills. At an internal temperature of 71°C, the steak was removed from the grill and heated in a microwave oven for 30 s until the temperature reached 50°C. Immediately after, they were randomly distributed to the panelists in sterile Petri dishes codified with four-digit numbers. Sensory evaluations were conducted using 11 trained panelists. Sensory tests used a 9-point scale: aroma intensity (ranging from absent to extremely intense), strange aroma (ranging from absent, 1, to extremely strong, 9), flavor (ranging from extremely bad to extremely good), strange flavor (ranging from absent, 1, to extremely intense, 9), tenderness (ranging from extremely tender, 1, to extremely hard, 9), juiciness (ranging from extremely dry, 1, to extremely juicy, 9), color (ranging from bright cherry red to dark red), and overall appearance (ranging from very bad to very good). The intensity of the aroma (mean 5.66), strange aroma (mean 2.27), flavor (mean 6.09), strange flavor (mean 1.85), juiciness (mean 5.36), color (mean 5.60), and overall appearance (mean 6.48) were similar between treatments, except for tenderness (P< 0.05) while for CD and CS mean 5.16 versus 6.36 for PL. The addition of PL in the diets of finishing cattle led to less tender meat. Acknowledgments for financial support in Brazil: IFGOIANO, FAPEG, and CNPq. |
