Incidence of pale, soft and exudative (PSE) pork meat in reason of extrinsic stress factors

Abstract

The incidence of PSE (pale, soft and exudative) pork meat is directly infl uenced by pre-slaughter handling of animals, compromising meat quality and resulting in economic losses for industry. Considering management, the main extrinsic stress factors are: the pre-slaughter rest time in lairage, the total fasting time and at farm and the transport time. To evaluate the effects of these factors on PSE meat incidence, pH of 1038 carcasses was measured at 45 minutes post mortem (pH 45) in a pig slaughterhouse in Paraná, Brazil. Carcasses with pH 45 ≤5.8 were classifi ed as PSE, and those with pH 45 >5.8 as normal. In order to verify if the factors infl uence PSE meat appearance, it was divided into categories according to it duration, and according to the number of animals evaluated in each category, the PSE meat frequency was estimated, and which time intervals obtained the lower incidence of the change. The total incidence of PSE carcasses was 19.

Morphological signs of myopathy in pork that show no drastic decrease in pH after slaughter

“…Górska & Wojtysiak (2017) observed that PSE syndrome promotes pathologic alterations in meat, particularly increases the frequency of giant and atrophic fibers, which may reduce meat quality. At the same time, to identify meat with PSE syndrome, a sharp decrease in pH during the first hour after slaughter should be seen (Solomon et al, 1998;Cazedey et al, 2016;Trevisan & Brum, 2020).…”

Comparative Study on Pale, Soft and Exudative (PSE) and Red, Firm and Non-Exudative (RFN) Pork: Protein Changes during Aging and the Differential Protein Expression of the Myofibrillar Fraction at 1 h Postmortem

“…With a reported incidence of 19.17%, pale, soft, and exudative (PSE) meat has always been a major concern in the pork industry [ 1 ]. To consumers, PSE meat is less favorable than red, firm, and non-exudative (RFN) meat, as appearance is one of the most important attributes of pork [ 2 ].…”

“…Genetic defects and pre-slaughter stress have been identified as major inducing factors of PSE meat [ 1 , 5 ]. After exsanguination, the myocytes enter into a hypoxic-ischemic environment, accelerating glycolysis and energy metabolism, resulting in lactic acid accumulation and pH decline.…”

“…Once the pH falls to the isoelectric point of muscle proteins, the gaps between the thick filaments and thin filaments start to narrow, and the space between the myofibrils starts to compress, which limits water retention. As the water loss of the myocytes reaches a certain extent, the filaments become thinner, and the reflectance of incident light declines, resulting in paleness [ 1 ]. If exposed to high temperatures, the muscle protein denaturation would accelerate [ 6 ], leading to further paleness and lower water holding capacity (WHC) [ 7 ].…”

How Epigenetics Can Enhance Pig Welfare?

“…However, once the technician/auditor has left the farm, it is difficult to guarantee that ap-propriate procedures will be constantly applied. Even though practices like improper handling may cause variations in the organoleptic characteristics (such as color, brightness, odor, texture, and taste) and/or chemical composition (such as pH, water holding capacity or color) of the meat [ 9 , 10 ], these changes are seldom noticed by the consumer. Moreover, it directly infers on the moral values of the final consumer who is purchasing the product certified for animal welfare, because he/she might pay for a product that does not meet his/her expectations of good welfare.…”