Ractopamine levels on performance, carcass characteristics and quality of pig meat

Autor: Cesar Augusto Pospissil Garbossa, Raimundo Vicente de Sousa, Vinícius de Souza Cantarelli, Maria Emília de Sousa Gomes Pimenta, Márcio Gilberto Zangeronimo, Hebert Silveira, Thiago Hiroshi Kuribayashi, Luis Gustavo dos Santos Cerqueira
Jazyk: English<br />Spanish; Castilian<br />Portuguese
Rok vydání: 2013
Předmět:
Zdroj: Revista Brasileira de Zootecnia, Vol 42, Iss 5, Pp 325-333 (2013)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 1516-3598
1806-9290
Popis: This study evaluated the effect of ractopamine (RAC) on the performance of finishing pigs and the meat quality of these animals. Seventy crossbred pigs (35 barrows and 35 females) selected for high gain of lean meat, with initial weight of 77.1±0.32 kg were distributed in randomized blocks with five treatments (0, 5, 10, 15, and 20 ppm RAC in the diet) and seven replications during 28 days. The experimental unit was represented by a male and a female pig. Regarding the performance variables, there was a linear increase in final weight with increasing levels of RAC, as well as in average daily weight gain. An improvement in feed conversion was observed for animals fed RAC, and the optimal level - estimated by the LRP model - was ~ 5 ppm. For feed intake, no significant effect on intake of digestible lysine and energy intake was observed. Carcass yield responses increased linearly with the RAC dose. Ash content, color component b* and loss drip linearly decreased with increasing doses of RAC. There was also a significant difference in the percentage of ether extract and crude protein in the loin, and treatment with 20 ppm RAC showed a lower amount of protein and larger amounts of lipids. Moisture content, color component L*, weight loss by cooking and defrosting, shear force and pH were not affected by the treatment. Concerning the lipid oxidation, there was no effect of RAC on the concentration of TBARS (thiobarbituric acid reactive substances) under cooling and under freezing. Thus, all ractopamine levels improve performance compared with control and do not negatively affect the quality of fresh, chilled or frozen pig meat.
Databáze: Directory of Open Access Journals
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