Impact of Dietary Supplementation with Goji Berries (Lycium barbarum) on Microbiological Quality, Physico-Chemical, and Sensory Characteristics of Rabbit Meat

Abstract

Forty-two New Zealand White rabbits (n = 21/group) were fed with two different diets: a commercial diet (control group) and a diet supplemented with goji berries (3% w/w). After slaughtering, the effect of dietary supplementation on microbiological, physico-chemical, and sensory characteristics of the rabbit loins, packed in an oxygen-permeable package, was evaluated at 6 h post mortem (day 0), after 4 and 10 days of refrigerated storage. No relevant results were obtained for pH and total volatile basic Nitrogen (TVBN) values but with regards to the color, some significant differences were observed between the groups. The goji berries (GBs) dietary supplementation had positive effects by reducing thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) values in all the observations (p < 0.001). Moreover, microbiological results showed that the supplementation had a significant impact on Lactobacillus spp. (p < 0.001) prevalence, indeed the goji group had higher means on day 0 (p < 0.05) and on day 4 (p < 0.001) than the control group. Lastly, with regards to the consumer’s test, the tasters assigned a higher score to GBs rabbit meatballs and the purchase interest increased when the rabbit diet was known. Overall, these results indicate that the goji berries inclusion in the rabbit diet could represent a valuable strategy to improve quality and sensory traits of meat.

Impact of Goji Berries (Lycium barbarum) Supplementation on the Energy Homeostasis of Rabbit Does: Uni- and Multivariate Approach

“…The adoption of new nutritional strategies for the rabbit doe could, therefore, improve both of these aspects. In the present study, a product which is receiving growing interest as a nutraceutical [1,2] and that has shown promising results for the rabbit's growth performance [15,25] was proposed: the goji berry. Two percentages of supplementation were evaluated in order to find the optimal concentration for goji inclusion in the food of rabbit doe.…”

“…It is worthwhile noting that 3% of goji supplementation had a different impact in growing rabbits: it guaranteed good growth performance and an improvement in the meat quality [15,25]. The use of goji in rabbit diet was also positively perceived by consumers who probably appreciate the use of nutraceutical products also in animal nutrition [25]. Overall, the goji inclusion in the feed could be a promising nutritional strategy from both a marketing and animal welfare point of view.…”

“…The effects of the goji berries are mainly studied in laboratory animals such as mice and rats [9,10,13] and only a few trials were conducted using the rabbit [14][15][16] although it is considered a useful experimental animal model [17][18][19][20][21][22]. Moreover, only a limited number of researches evaluated the effects of goji berry on the reproductive and productive performance, other than on the quality of meat, in livestock animals, rabbits included [15,16,[23][24][25].…”

Effect of an Olive Vegetation Water Phenolic Extract on the Physico-Chemical, Microbiological and Sensory Traits of Shrimp (Parapenaeus longirostris) during the Shelf-Life

“…The total volatile basic nitrogen (TVB-N) was determined using VELP Marka model UDK 139 apparatus (Velp Scientifica, Usmate, Milan, Italy). To briefly illustrate, homogenized shrimp samples were alkalized with 2 g of magnesium oxide and, subsequently, the TVB-N value (mg of N per 100 g of shrimp meat) was determined by steam distillation and titration with 0.01 N HCl [ 29 ]. The thiobarbituric reactive substances (TBARS), expressed as mg malondialdehyde (MDA)/kg muscle, were measured to evaluate the lipid oxidation [ 30 ].…”

Characterization of Bacterial Microbiota Composition along the Gastrointestinal Tract in Rabbits

“…Anyway, to date, only a few studies are available regarding the composition of the microbiota that inhabits the different sections of the gastrointestinal tract of healthy rabbits [ 22 , 23 ]. Hence, better knowledge and a complete microbial mapping of all different parts of the gastrointestinal tract are necessary for promoting the health and welfare of the rabbit, whose market is going through a period of difficulty and it is the subject of animal welfare issues [ 24 , 25 ]. Indeed, new strategies could be developed to favor the establishment of an advisable and “healthy” intestinal bacterial community that increases the digestible efficacy of the nutrient and, at the same time, saves energy for the host [ 17 , 26 , 27 , 28 ].…”