Boar taint detection: A comparison of three sensory protocols.
While recent studies state an important role of human sensory methods for daily routine control of so-called boar taint, the evaluation of different heating methods is still incomplete. This study investigated three common heating methods (microwave (MW), hot-water (HW), hot-iron (HI)) for boar fat evaluation. The comparison was carried out on 72 samples with a 10-person sensory panel. The heating method significantly affected the probability of a deviant rating. Compared to an assumed 'gold standard' (chemical analysis), the performance was best for HI when both sensitivity and specificity were considered. The results show the superiority of the panel result compared to individual assessors. However, the consistency of the individual sensory ratings was not significantly different between MW, HW, and HI. The three protocols showed only fair to moderate agreement. Concluding from the present results, the hot-iron method appears to be advantageous for boar taint evaluation as compared to microwave and hot-water.
Department of Animal Sciences, Meat Science Group, University of Göttingen, D-37075 Göttingen, Germany. Electronic address: johanna.trautmann@agr.uni-goettingen.de.
Johanna
J
Mörlein
Department of Animal Sciences, Meat Science Group, University of Göttingen, D-37075 Göttingen, Germany.
Lisa
L
Meier-Dinkel
Department of Animal Sciences, Biometrics & Bioinformatics Group, University of Göttingen, D-37075 Göttingen, Germany.
Jan
J
Gertheiss
Department of Animal Sciences, Meat Science Group, University of Göttingen, D-37075 Göttingen, Germany; isi GmbH & Co. KG, D-37124 Rosdorf, Göttingen, Germany. Electronic address: daniel.moerlein@agr.uni-goettingen.de.
Daniel
D
Mörlein
D000736:Androstenes / Q000032:analysis; D000818:Animals; D004041:Dietary Fats / Q000032:analysis*; D005506:Food Contamination; D005511:Food Handling / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods; D005513:Food Inspection / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D063427:Food Quality; D005858:Germany; D006358:Hot Temperature; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008460:Meat / Q000032:analysis*; D008872:Microwaves; D009812:Odorants; D010675:Pheromones / Q000032:analysis*; D011786:Quality Control; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012677:Sensation; D012684:Sensory Thresholds; D012862:Skatole / Q000032:analysis; D034421:Sus scrofa / Q000502:physiology*
D000736:Androstenes; D004041:Dietary Fats; D010675:Pheromones; C000214:androst-16-en-3-one; D012862:Skatole; C029310:lard
Androstenone; Animal welfare; Castration; Meat quality; Pig; Pork; Quality control; Skatole