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Relationship between Muscle Biochemical and Meat Quality Properties of Early Deboned Broiler Breasts

Department of Food Technology, P. O. Box 27, FIN-00014, University of Helsinki, Finland

D. L. Fletcher

Department of Poultry Science, The University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602; Phone: (706) 542-2476; FAX: (706) 542-2475

Correspondence: D. L. Fletcher

Increased toughness and variability in tenderness have been the major reasons why early harvesting of breast fillets (pre-chill or immediately post-chill) has not been successfully applied to broilers. In red meat species, several biochemical and histological factors have been shown to be highly correlated with final meat quality. Experiments were conducted to determine if some of these biochemical and histological parameters could be related to the variations in breast meat quality associated with early deboning. Results obtained for the biochemical, histological, and meat quality parameters were in general agreement with previous reports from comparable studies. However, the results indicated only minor relationships between the variation in meat quality and measurements of glycogen content, glycolytic potential, pH, R-value, fiber cross sectional area, and capillary density of early deboned breast meat.

Key Words: Biochemical parameters • broiler breast muscle • histological parameters • meat quality