Effect of Genetic Strain and Sex on Water Absorption and Water-To-Protein Ratio in Chicken Meat

Abstract

The objectives of the present study were to evaluate the water and protein contents and the water-to-protein ratio of chicken parts before and after the pre-chilling process, to compare these results with the values officially recommended by the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture, and to evaluate the effect of genetic strain and sex on these parameters. Water (%) and protein (%) contents, and water-toprotein ratio (WPR) of boneless and skinless breast (FILLETS) and breast with bone and skin (BREAST) were determined before (BPC) and after (APC) carcass pre-chilling. A total of 585 samples were evaluated: 221 fillets/male, 216 breasts/male, 76 fillets/female, and 72 fillets/female of four different broilers strains were evaluated before (BPC) and after (APC) samples. Water and protein contents and water-to-protein ratio were determined according to the Brazilian legislation. Results showed that there were no significant differences between genetic strains (p<0.05) neither in samples collected before or after the chiller. There were no statistical differences in the parameters studied among genetic strains. However, a high percentage of male breast samples presented water level and water-to-protein ratio above the official limits already before pre-chilling.

Utilização De Algoritmos De Aprendizagem De Máquina Para Predição De Absorção De Água Nas Carcaças De Frango / Use of Machine Learning Algorithms for Water Absorption Prediction in Chicken Carcasses

“…Ocupa a posição de segundo maior produtor, apenas atrás dos Estados Unidos, fazendo com que a carne de frango esteja presente na mesa de consumidores dos cinco continentes, e consequentemente estando submetido às diversas premissas legais relativas por tipo de mercado (Embrapa, 2017). Inúmeras normas de qualidade e segurança dos alimentos são inerentes à produção de carne de frango, dentre elas, a absorção de água nas carcaças, ou Brazilian Journal of Development, Curitiba, v.7, n.1, p. 2391-2402 jan. 2021 seja, o percentual de água adquirida pelas carcaças de aves durante o processo de abate de aves e demais operações (Brasil, 1998;Ferrari et al, 2016).…”