Forst- und Lebensmittelwissenschaften HAFL, 3052 Zollikofen

Traditional western Swiss specialties regionally produced pork

Boutefas and Jambon de la borne are traditional meat products from the cantons Vaud and Fribourg. A precondition for a Protected Designation of Origin (AOP) for these regional specialties is a specific quality of the primary material. The aim of this study was to examine if this precondition is met when the meat is derived from pigs of particular Swiss breeds that are fed exclusively regionally produced compounds. For this purpose, 170 pigs sired by Duroc, Piétrain or Swiss Large White sireline boars, the latter being selected for either high growth rate or high meat quality, were allocated into two feeding groups. One group received a conventional concentrate (control feed) and the other a concentrate without soybean meal and with a lower protein and lysine content (regional feed) as a supplement to whey. The pigs receiving the regional feed grew slightly more slowly and put on slightly more fat than the control pigs. Furthermore, their adipose contained less polyunsaturated fatty acids and showed a beneficial (lower) omega-6 / omega-3 ratio. These differences in fat composition were also detected in the processed meat products. Sensory analyses indicated a significant difference between the Boutefas made from meat and fat of the control pigs or of the animals fed the regional feed. The Piétrain crossbreds grew appreciably more slowly with the regional feed than with the control feed and showed undesired discolorations in the Jambon de la borne to a high extent. It is concluded that the particular genetic origin and the regional feed resulted in a specific meat and fat quality, which also was mirrored in the processed meat products.

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