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ARS Home » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #126494
Title: PREDICTION OF PORK CARCASS COMPOSITION BASED ON CROSS-SECTIONAL REGION ANALYSIS OF DUAL ENERGY X-RAY ABSORPTIOMETRY (DXA) SCANNING

Author
item Mitchell, Alva
item SCHOLZ, A. - LUDWIG-MAXMILIANS UNIV.
item Pursel, Vernon

Submitted to: Journal of Animal Science
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/15/2002
Publication Date: 2/15/2003
Citation: Meat Science 63:265-271

Interpretive Summary: Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) was used to measure pork carcass composition by performing a total scan of the right half of 262 pork carcasses. The DXA total carcass scan is too slow for on-line slaughter application; therefore, this study was conducted to determine the feasibility of predicting carcass composition based on a single cross- sectional measurement. The results of this study are consistent with thos of other studies that indicate that the composition of a cross-section of the pork carcass is highly correlated with the composition of the entire carcass. In addition, this study demonstrates that the cross-sectional composition can be measured using dual energy x-ray absorptiometry. The implication is that this approach may be adaptable to on-line evaluation of pork carcasses.

Technical Abstract: Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) was used to measure pork carcass composition by performing a total scan of the right half of 262 pork carcasses (42.7ñ5.2 kg). The DXA scans were analyzed for percentage fat in the entire half-carcass as well as the shoulder, ham, loin, and side regions. A total of 14 cross-sections (57.6 mm wide) were analyzed: six in the shoulder/thoracic region, three in the loin region, and five in the ham region. The mean fat content of the half-carcasses was 24.1ñ7.0%; shoulder region, 23.8ñ6.7%; ham region 22.9ñ6.7%; loin region, 23.7ñ7.6%; and the side region 27.9ñ7.6%. The correlation (Rý) between the fat content of a single cross-sectional slice and total fat content ranged from 0.908 to 0.976. The highest correlations were in the area of the last ribs. The highest correlations between single cross-section and region analysis were: shoulder, 0.978; ham, 0.972; loin, 0.973; and side, 0.959. Using a single slice from the ham region, the percentage of fat or lean in the half-carcass could be predicted with an R2 of 0.81 and a standard error the estimate of 2.04. Prediction equations were used to analyze a separate group of 65 half-carcasses. These results indicate that carcass fat and lean percentages can be measured by performing a single-pass cross- sectional scan that would be compatible with on-line processing.