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Physico-chemical shelf-life indicators of meat from broilers given <i>Moringa oleifera</i> leaf meal


C Wapi
TT Nkukwana
LC Hoffman
K Dzama
E Pieterse
T Mabusela
V Muchenje

Abstract

The objective of the study was to determine the effect of using Moringa oleifera leaf meal (MOLM) as an additive on physico-chemical shelf life indicators of meat from broilers. A total of 432 1-day-old chicks were randomly allocated to four treatments (TRT’s). Water and feed was provided ad libitum. The feeding phases were pre-starter (0 to 7 days), starter (8 to 18 days), grower (19 to 28 days) and finisher (29 to 35 days).The four TRT’s contained graded levels of the MOLM at 1000 g/ton, 750 g/ton, 500 g/ton and 0 g/ton (control), respectively. The birds were slaughtered at 35 days of age and the breast muscle was sampled for meat pH, colour and drip loss measurements over 7 days. The pH levels in all the TRT’s were constant from Day 1 to Day 5, peaking on Day 6, and then declining on Day 7. Using MOLM as an additive had a significant effect on chickens, with TRT1 having the highest lightness (L*) values. The redness (a*) values were the highest in TRT2. Using MOLM as an additive had an effect on yellowness (b*) values. Drip loss was not affected by the dietary treatments. Using MOLM as an additive in broiler feeds produced chicken breast with a light (L*) appearance while shelf life indicators generally remained constant in the first 5-days of storage.

Keywords: Diet effect, drip loss, freshness, meat colour, meat pH


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eISSN: 2221-4062
print ISSN: 0375-1589