Differences in meat quality between organically and conventionally produced broiler muscles

This study compared organically reared chickens with conventionally reared ones with regard to fatty acid composition traits. The conventional and organic flocks with an average age of 40 days were raised in an indoor pen. Stocking densities of conventional and organic ones were 0.05 and 0.13 m/bird, respectively. The conventional diet was formulated with common ingredients whereas the organic ingredients containing more than 80% certified organic ingredients were produced in accordance with the Korean Organic farming Standard. Twenty carcasses per group were slaughtered and analyzed. Only crude ash were higher in the conventional than in the organic one (P <0.05). The organic ones had higher cooking loss and WHC (P <0.05). For shear forces, organic ones had lower than conventional pigs (P<0.05). The breast and thigh muscles of organic ones showed a higher CIE a*, b* value and myoglobin content compared with the conventional ones (P<0.001). Introduction The recent crises such as Avian Influenza in relation to livestock production, have frightened the consumers and some turn towards organic meat. Organic food can be defined as the product of a farming system which avoids the use of synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, growth promoters, and additives. Many consumers pay a premium to purchase boneless chicken breasts and make value judgements related to animal welfare standards or organic production. Consumers demand organic chicken through value systems favoring natural production, but may consider such products superior over conventional system with an environment friendly image (McEachern and Willock, 2004). The different feeds, used in organic and conventional production systems, may influence quality in chicken. However, there is little information on the meat quality between conventional and organic bird. Consequently, introduction of organic poultry production systems calls for establishment of quality assurances that ensure production of high quality meat, as demanded by the organic consumer. The objective of the study is to compare between organic and conventional chicken, in order to reveal differences on meat quality traits. Materials and Methods The conventional flocks (20 chicks) were reared and housed in an indoor pen (0.05 m2/bird), whereas the organic flocks (20 chicks) were reared and housed in an indoor pen (0.13 m2/bird) instead of 0.07 m2/bird. All flocks were housed only in indoor area for 40 days until slaughtering. Chickens were fed ad libitum the diets and water. The conventional diet was formulated with common ingredients whereas the organic ingredients containing more than 80% certified organic ingredients. Calculated nutrient composition of the experimental diets are presented in Table 1. All birds were slaughtered at similar live weight