RESUMOSubmitted on May 24 th , 2015 and accepted on November 11 th , 2016. 1 This work is part of the project 'Characterization of the production and commercialization of natural colored sheep raised in the Pampa Biome', financed by the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq Sheep meat quality is influenced by a number of factors either intrinsic (species, breed, sex, and age) or extrinsic (nutrition, environment, and pre-and post-slaughter handling) to the animal. However, it is not known whether wool fiber color variations within the same breed can influence the instrumental and sensory characteristics of the meat. Thus, the objective of this study was to investigate the effect of the genetic group on the instrumental and sensory characteristics of meat of white and natural colored Corriedale lambs. The 29 lambs (13 natural colored and 16 white) used in the experiments were raised on natural pasture under extensive grazing conditions in the region of the Pampa Biome, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The animals were slaughtered at average age of 18 months. Meat evaluations were performed on samples from longissimus dorsi muscles. The analysis of variance was used to evaluate the effect of the genetic group and the means were compared by the F test. The instrumental analysis showed that meat of natural colored lambs had darker red color, higher 24 h pH, and higher scores for fat cover and texture. Sensory profiling was performed by nine trained panelists in four sessions. The sensory evaluation showed that natural colored lambs had darker red color, higher scores of fat taste and characteristic taste to the species. Despite significant differences in some sensory aspects, the samples were equally accepted by the panelists. Meat of natural colored Corriedale lambs had different instrumental and sensory profiles from that of white lambs.
Keywords
Qualidade da carne de cordeiros Corriedale brancos e naturalmente coloridos criados no Bioma PampaFatores intrínsecos (espécie, raça, sexo e idade) e extrínsecos ao animal (nutrição, ambiente e manejos pré e pós-abate) interferem na qualidade da carne ovina. Contudo, não se sabe como variações da coloração das fibras de lã dentro de uma mesma raça podem influenciar as características instrumentais e sensoriais da carne. Assim, objetivou-se com este trabalho investigar o efeito do grupo genético dos animais sobre as características instrumentais e sensoriais da carne de cordeiros Corriedale naturalmente coloridos e brancos. Foram utilizados 29 animais (13 naturalmente coloridos e 16 brancos), criados na região do Bioma Pampa, no Rio Grande do Sul, em condições extensivas de pastagem natural melhorada e abatidos com idade média de 18 meses. As avaliações da carne foram realizadas no músculo longissimus 110 Pablo Tavares Costa et al.