Functional/Physicochemical Properties and Oxidative Stability of Ground Meat from Broilers Reared under Different Photoperiods

Authors: TUELL, J.R.XUE,SIWEN - Purdue University; PARK, JUNYOUNG - Purdue University; WANG, WEICHAO - Purdue University; Cheng, Heng-Wei; KIM, YUAN - Purdue University

Submitted to: Poultry Science
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/24/2020
Publication Date: 5/6/2020
Citation: Tuell, J., Park, J., Wang, W., Cheng, H., Kim, Y.H. 2020. Functional/Physicochemical Properties and Oxidative Stability of Ground Meat from Broilers Reared under Different Photoperiods. Poultry Science. 99(7), 3761-3768. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psj.2020.04.021.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psj.2020.04.021

Interpretive Summary: The current lighting regimes with continuous (24 light:0 dark) or near-continuous (23 light:1 dark) photoperiod increase broiler growth rate, feed consumption, and feed conversion, but the short resting time may affect musculoskeletal development, increasing incidence of lameness and its associated pain and walking disability (lameness). The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of photoperiod on physicochemical properties and oxidative stability of meat through broiler processing. The broilers were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 photoperiod treatments (hours L=Light, D=Dark): 20L:4D, 18L:6D, 16L:8D, and 12L:12D. The results indicate that the meat of 12L:12D group had the lowest protein and lipid degradations than those of the other groups. The findings provide some insights for poultry meat producers to develop management strategies for preventing the rearing condition caused meat quality deterioration.

Technical Abstract: High photoperiods are utilized in the broiler industry to maximize animal performance, although lighting regime impact on meat quality remains poorly understood. The current study evaluated the impact of photoperiod on functional/physicochemical properties and oxidative stability of meat through broiler processing. Ross 308 broilers (n = 432) were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 photoperiod treatments (hours L=Light, D=Dark): 20L:4D, 18L:6D, 16L:8D and 12L:12D with 6 pens per treatment. At 42 d of age, two broilers per pen (n = 12 per treatment) were harvested under the standard condition. Broiler tenderloin (M. Pectoralis minor) and leg muscles were dissected at 1 d postmortem and frozen/stored at -40 °C. After 24 h thawing at 2 °C, the samples from each bird were deboned, ground, and formed into patties in 3 independent batches. Photoperiod had no impact on pH, water-holding capacity, textural profile, meat emulsion activity index, and thiol content (P > 0.05). The patties from 12L:12D and 16L:8D had lower CIE b* (yellowness) values than 18L:6D and 20L:4D (P < 0.05), while 12L:12D had lower chroma (color intensity) values compared to other treatments (P < 0.05). The meat from 20L:4D exhibited lower sarcoplasmic protein solubility compared to other treatments (P < 0.05), while both 20L:4D and 18L:6D exhibited lower total protein solubility compared to 12L:12D (P < 0.05). In addition, higher transmission values (indication of protein denaturation) were observed in 20L:4D compared to other treatments (P < 0.05), it was in the order: 20L:4D (30.7) > 18L:6D (24.6) > 16L”8D (23.9) > 12L:12D (16.3). There was photoperiod and display storage interaction (P < 0.05) on 2-thiobarbituric acid reactive substances values. The patties from 12L:12D had less lipid oxidation compared to the patties from other treatments, while protein oxidation increased with display (P < 0.05). The current results suggest broilers reared under short-day light schedule, such as 12L:12D, should be beneficial for improving meat protein functionality and oxidative stability.