Effect of Variety and Sex on the Carcass and Meat Quality Traits of Guinea Fowl (Numida meleagris L.)

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate selected parameters of carcass and meat quality in 16-week-old pearl gray and lavender guinea fowl. The birds were raised in summer and fall, in an extensive system. Until 4 weeks of age, the birds were kept indoors, and from week 5 until slaughter they could use outdoor space enclosed by a fence, adjacent to the building. Guinea fowl were fed complete chicken diets: starter (weeks 0–6), grower (weeks 7–12), and finisher (weeks >13). In comparison with lavender guinea fowl, pearl gray birds had higher live weight at slaughter (p = 0.001) and higher carcass weight (p = 0.001). Females, compared with males, had a higher carcass dressing percentage (p ˂ 0.001), lower liver weight (p = 0.008), lower heart weight (p ˂ 0.001), and lower total weight of giblets (p = 0.004). The leg muscles of pearl gray guinea fowl, compared with those of lavender birds, had a higher content of dry matter (p ≤ 0.029). The breast muscles (p ˂ 0.001) and leg muscles (p = 0.017) of lavender guinea fowl contained less fat than the muscles of pearl gray birds. The breast muscles of females had a higher content of dry matter (p = 0.044) and ash (p = 0.016), and lower total collagen content (p = 0.028) than the breast muscles of males. The leg muscles of females were characterized by a higher pH (p ˂ 0.001), and lower cooking loss (p = 0.004) and drip loss (p = 0.005) than the breast muscles of males. The breast muscles of lavender guinea fowl, compared with those of pearl gray birds, were characterized by a higher chroma value (p ˂ 0.001), and a higher contribution of redness (p ˂ 0.001) and yellowness (p = 0.002), and their leg muscles were lighter in color (p ˂ 0.001), with a higher contribution of yellowness (p = 0.041) and a higher hue angle (p = 0.037). The value of chroma (p = 0.004) and the contribution of yellowness (p = 0.002) were higher in the breast muscles of females, compared with males. Neither variety nor sex affected (p > 0.05) the evaluated sensory properties of guinea fowl meat or the proportions of total SFAs, total UFAs, total MUFAs, and total PUFAs in the intramuscular fat (IMF) of breast and leg muscles. Meat from guinea fowl of both analyzed varieties can be an excellent alternative to more popular types of poultry meat due to its high nutritional value and eating quality.

The fatty acid profile and the quality of breast and leg muscles in female and male pearl gray guinea fowl (Numida meleagris)

“…In guinea fowl, the greatest differences have been observed in the protein content of breast muscles, which ranged from 22.8% in 6-mo-old females ( Musundire et al, 2017 ) to 23.48% in 12-wk-old females ( Tufarelli and Laudadio, 2015 ) or even 27.5% in 1-yr-old males ( Musundire et al, 2017 ). The protein content of leg muscles is less varied, ranging from 19.66% in 16-wk-old, free-range guinea fowl and 20.38% in 16-wk-old birds raised in an intensive system ( Boz et al, 2021 ) to 21.26% in 16-wk-old guinea fowl reared indoors ( Pudyszak et al, 2005 ) and 21.89% in 16-wk-old, free-range lavender guinea fowl ( Śmiecińska et al, 2022 ). In turn, the IMF content of breast muscles was determined in the range of 0.21% ( Śmiecińska et al, 2022 ) to 0.84% ( Pudyszak et al, 2005 ) and 2.09% in 12-wk-old guinea fowl broilers fed faba beans ( Tufarelli and Laudadio, 2015 ).…”

“…Pearl gray guinea fowl were selected for the study as the most widely reared variety of the examined bird species ( López-Pedrouso et al, 2019 ). The present study is a continuation of the authors' previous research which compared the quality of meat from pearl gray and lavender guinea fowl ( Śmiecińska et al, 2022 ). To the best of the authors' knowledge, the quality of the major muscles in guinea fowl carcasses has never been compared in the literature.…”

“…The administered diets had the following content of crude protein and energy: starter diet (wk 0–6)—19.0% and 12.3 MJ/kg, respectively; grower diet (wk 7–12) —16.5% and 11.6 MJ/kg, respectively; finisher diet (wk >13) —15.08% and 11.5 MJ/kg, respectively. The detailed composition of the diets fed to guinea fowl in different feeding phases was presented by Śmiecińska et al (2022) . The average hot carcass weight was 1,056.56 g in females and 1,037.44 g in males.…”

The Effect of Rearing System on Plumage Quality and Foot-Pad Dermatitis in Guinea Fowls and Pheasants

“…Although pheasants originate in Asia and guinea fowls in Africa, they spread to all continents due to their high adaptability. The breeding of game birds is a common practice in many European and American countries, and they make up a large proportion of game birds in these countries (Dahlgren, 1988;Nielsen, 2009;Jameel et al, 2022;Śmiecińska et al, 2022). These game birds are largely rearing in our country for the purpose of stocking the nature (Uçar and Sarıca, 2018).…”

A High-Precision Method for 100-Day-Old Classification of Chickens in Edge Computing Scenarios Based on Federated Computing

“…Thirdly, the accurate identification of chicken day-age is helpful to accurately determine the broiler production time and the elimination time of laying hens, which can improve the economic benefits. The meat quality of broilers varies depending on the different day-age at which they are slaughtered, divided and sold [ 15 ]. By determining the slaughter time through the accurate day-age judgment, the texture needs of different chicken products can be grasped dynamically in the market, so that they can provide chickens suitable in terms of day-age [ 16 ].…”