Acceptability by sensory and visual analyses of meat from Nellore heifers fed with natural additives and finished in feedlots

• Published in: Journal of the science of food and agriculture Vol. 100; no. 13; pp. 4782 - 4790
• Main Authors: Oliveira Monteschio, Jessica, Passetti, Rodrigo Augusto Cortez, Souza, Kennyson Alves, Guerrero, Ana, Moraes Pinto, Laura Adriane, Valero, Maribel Velandia, Vital, Ana Carolina Pelaes, Osório, José Carlos Silveira, Araújo Castilho, Ricardo, Sañudo, Carlos, Prado, Ivanor Nunes
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Chichester, UK John Wiley & Sons, Ltd 01.10.2020; John Wiley and Sons, Limited
• Subjects: Acceptability; Acceptance; active blend; Additives; Aging; Aging (natural); Animal Feed - analysis; Animals; Cattle - metabolism; Consumers; Diet; Diet - veterinary; Essential oils; Eugenol; Eugenol - metabolism; Feedlots; Female; Food Additives - metabolism; Humans; Intensive farming; Meat; Meat - analysis; meat color; meat quality; Oils, Volatile - metabolism; Rosemary; Sensory evaluation; Sensory properties; Syzygium - metabolism; Taste; Thymol; Thymol - metabolism; Vanillin; meat quality; meat color; consumers; active blend; essential oils
• ISSN: 0022-5142; 1097-0010
• DOI: 10.1002/jsfa.10537

BACKGROUND This study evaluated the acceptability (by sensorial and visual analyses) of meat from 40 Nellore heifers (finished in feedlots for 73 days) fed with different diets supplemented with essential oils (EOs) and an active principle blend. The five diets tested were: CON – a diet without essential oil and active principle blend (eugenol, thymol, and vanillin); ROS – a diet supplemented with rosemary EO; BLE – supplemented with a blend; BCL – a diet with clove EO+ blend; and BRC – a diet with rosemary, clove EOs + blend. The acceptability of diet and aging time was evaluated by consumers. RESULTS Diet affected consumer acceptability and visual analysis (meat color). The diets with EO and the blend showed better sensory acceptance by the consumers; meat aged for 7 days received higher scores than meat aged for 1 day. Meat from heifers that received both EOs + blend (BCL, BRC) obtained the highest scores in the visual evaluation. CONCLUSION The use of natural compounds in ruminant diets improves the sensory characteristics of meat without damaging visual acceptability and may be an alternative to the conventional additive market. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry