Effects of diet on carcass, meat and eating quality of once-bred Piemontese x Friesian heifers

Abstract 

Effects of three different diets on carcass, meat and eating quality of once-bred crossbred heifers were examined, as part of a study to determine the feasibility of using the heifers for slaughter after calving instead of slaughtering them as veal. Crossbred Piemontese x Friesian (n=210) were allotted to three groups, which were fed either maize silage, pre-wilted grass silage, or a mixture of the two. After calving, the heifers were slaughtered and the meat and eating quality of the loins were assessed. Carcass quality was determined as carcass weight, conformation score and fatness score. Meat quality was determined by measuring pH, colour, drip loss, heating loss, shearforce and intramuscular fat. Meat of heifers fed on maize silage and on pre-wilted grass silage was examined for sensory characteristics, such as tenderness, juiciness, aroma and liver taste. Results showed that maize silage is the best diet, since it produced better daily weight gain, better carcass conformation, and a lighter and more tender meat than either the pre-wilted grass or the mixture produced.

Keywords:  Carcass quality, Meat quality, sensory characteristics, Beef production, Heifers, Cross breeding