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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Athens, Georgia » U.S. National Poultry Research Center » Quality and Safety Assessment Research Unit » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #327051
Research Project: Assessment and Improvement of Poultry Meat, Egg, and Feed Quality

Location: Quality and Safety Assessment Research Unit

Title: Effect of wooden breast condition on water-holding capacity of broiler breast pectoralis major

Author
item Zhuang, Hong
item Bowker, Brian

Submitted to: World Poultry Congress Proceedings
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/28/2016
Publication Date: 9/5/2016
Citation: Zhuang, H., Bowker, B.C. 2016. Effect of wooden breast condition on water-holding capacity of broiler breast pectoralis major. World Poultry Congress Proceedings. World's Poultry Scienec Journal, Book of Abstracts for the XXIV.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Wooden breast condition (WBC) is an emerging muscle abnormality with broiler breast meat. Limited studies have shown that WBC significantly affects meat quality. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of WBC on water-holding capacity (WHC) of broiler breast pectoralis major. Broiler breast meat deboned at 3 h postmortem was collected from a commercial plant and categorized as normal, moderate, or severe WBC based on the incidence and severity of diffuse hardened areas throughout fillets and the degree of palpable rigidity. Meat WHC was evaluated with four different methods, purge loss, salt-induced water uptake, thaw loss, and cook yield. Results showed that there was no difference in purge loss (%) between the normal meat (1.05%) and the meat (1.16%) with severe WBC (P > 0.05). However, salt-induced water uptake, thaw loss, and cook yield of breast meat with WBC was lower than the control by more than 15%, 1%, and 7%, respectively (P < 0.05). There were no differences for these three measurements between the meat with moderate WBC and that with severe WBC (P > 0.05). These results demonstrate that the effects of WBC on meat WHC vary with the measure methods. Wooden breast condition does not affect purge loss; however, it reduces salt-induced water uptake, thaw loss, and cook yield of chicken breast pectoralis major. These results also indicate that there would not be large differences in purge in raw meat packages between normal and WBC pectoralis major products. However, WBC may significantly impact meat marination performance and cook product yield.