Quality of meat from three muscles of farmed fallow deer (Dama dama)

Abstract

The quality of three muscles (supraspinatus, longissimus, semimembranosus) were studied in a group of 12 farmed fallow deer bucks (Dama dama) aged 28 months. The aim was to compare the selected quality traits of these muscles and to assess the extent to which these traits change after 14 days of being stored in vacuum packaging. Both the pH and the temperature were significantly affected by the muscle (P < 0.0001) and the time of storage (P < 0.0001). The supraspinatus muscle had the highest initial and final pH (pH0.5 h = 6.95; pH15d = 5.93), while m. semimembranosus showed the greatest drop in temperature (by 37.5°C) 24 h postmortem. The colour parameters differed among muscles. Only lightness (L*) was not influenced by the duration of storage (P = 0.081). The 14-day storage in a vacuum bag caused a decrease in the drip loss (P = 0.002), free water (%; P = 0.001), free water (cm2; P < 0.0001) and a cooking loss (P = 0.050). The duration of time in storage caused an increase in the dry-matter (P = 0.049) and crude-protein (P = 0.044) contents and a decrease of the water to protein ratio (W : CP; P = 0.014). There was a significant effect of muscle on the dry-matter (P < 0.0001) and crude-protein (P < 0.001) contents and W : CP (P < 0.0001). The highest contents of dry matter (P ≤ 0.01) and crude protein (P ≤ 0.01) were found in m. longissimus. The highest W : CP was observed in m. supraspinatus (W : CP24 h = 4.02; W/CP15d = 3.92). The results indicated a different technological quality of the analysed muscles, and, thus, a need to further explore the background of these differences in the early postmortem period and after meat maturation.

Effect of age on nutritional properties of Iberian wild red deer meat

“…for farm‐raised fallow deer and hunted female fallow deer respectively, but lower than the 0.5% found in both studies for meat of hunted males. However, our findings were lower than those reported by several other authors, who found IMF values ranging from 0.56 to 3.61% in deer meat …”

“…However, our findings were lower than those reported by several other authors, who found IMF values ranging from 0.56 to 3.61% in deer meat. 7,9,10,[29][30][31] On the other hand, cholesterol content decreased as slaughter age increased, showing lower values (P < 0.05) in older animals (52.78 vs 48.72 vs 45.34 mg per 100 g meat for L, M and H groups respectively) ( Fig. 2).…”

Carcass and meat quality characteristics from Iberian wild red deer (Cervus elaphus) hunted at different ages

“…Despite being the more common source of meat, available information about the influence of slaughter age on carcass and meat quality is very scarce for wild red deer. Studies that have assessed the influence of age on carcass and meat characteristics are either very old under wild conditions or have been conducted using farmed deer . Recently, Lorenzo et al .…”

“…Studies that have assessed the influence of age on carcass and meat characteristics are either very old under wild conditions 19 or have been conducted using farmed deer. 6,[20][21][22] Recently, Lorenzo et al 23 have studied the effect of slaughter age on fatty acid profile, cholesterol content, amino acid composition, and mineral content of 150 Iberian wild red deer meat samples. However, these authors did not analyze the influence of age on carcass and meat characteristics included in the current research.…”

Influence of selected factors on meat quality from farm-raised and wild fallow deer (Dama dama): a review

“…The type of muscle and its structure influence the rapidity and direction of post-slaughter changes in the muscle tissue (Wiklund et al 2004). Bykowska et al (2018) observed an effect (P ≤ 0.0001) of the muscle type (musculus supraspinatus, longissimus, and semimembranosus) on farmed fallow deer pH value. The supraspinatus muscle characterized with the highest pH, which may lead to conclusion about the development of DFD-like lower meat quality.…”