BRIEF COMMUNICATION: Exploring the effects of growth rate and meat yield on lamb meat quality

摘要

New Zealand sheep breeding programs currently place high emphases on selection for growth and yield. High growth rates and high meat yield have both been reported as having negative effects on meat quality in pig, beef and poultry (Dransfield & Sosnicki 1999), probably due to changes in muscle structure and metabolism. In contrast, organic pork has shown to be less tender than conventional pork, which is thought to be due to organic pigs growing more slowly (Therkildsen et al. 2012). It is of importance to evaluate these relationships in lamb.Some relationships between meat quality traits and yield and growth have been observed in the Beef + Lamb New Zealand Central Progeny Test (Payne et al. 2009). However, the Central Progeny Test was not specifically designed to evaluate these relationships so these results need to be viewed with some caution.