RESEARCH: Influence of dietary fat on pork eating quality

Scientists based at the University of Zaragoza, Spain, have published an article on the influence of dietary fat’s influence on pork eating quality.

The study compared the influence of dietary fat sources on meat quality, fatty acid composition and sensory attributes in pork. The experiment was conducted with 43 entire male pigs (Pietrain × [Landrace × Large White]) which were fed a basal diet without added fat (control diet) or supplemented with different sources of fat: animal fat (1%, AF1; 3%, AF3), soyabean oil (1%, SBO1) and calcium soaps of palm oil (1%, CaSPO1).

Dietary fat supplementation did not significantly affect ultimate pH, colour, Warner-Bratzler shear force values, sensory attributes or SFA.

Pigs fed SBO1 had the lowest proportion of monounsaturated fats (MUFA) and the highest of polyunsaturated fats (PUFA).

In conclusion, these dietary fat sources could be recommended for inclusion in diets, at these levels, with no detrimental effect on eating quality. Despite finding no significant differences, the principle component analysis (PCA) afforded a comprehensive view of the predominating attributes of pork from animals fed the different fats.

The study was published in the scientific journal Meat Science.