Handbook of Meat Processing

Technological Quality of Meat for Processing 31

drip loss, poor WHC, and pale color of pale,

soft exudative (PSE) pork (Bendall and

Wismer - Pedersen 1962 ). Development of the

PSE condition may also be due to denatur-

ation and precipitation of sarcoplasmic pro-

teins onto myofi brillar proteins (Joo et al.

1999 ). The genetic profi le of pigs that produce

PSE pork is advantageous for production

reasons. Brewer et al. (2002) reported that

chops from Duroc - sired pigs were more

tender than those from Duroc/Landrace -

and Pietrain - sired pigs. Brewer et al. (2002)

reported similar effects on “ texture ” of

chops from Halothane positive (nn) and neg-

ative (NN) Pietrain, RN - Hampshire, rn+

Hampshire, Berkshire, and Duroc lines of

pigs.

Duroc/Landrace, and Duroc/Hampshire
experienced purge losses of 12 – 13%.
Genetics appears to play a signifi cant role in
WHC.
In addition to pH decline, alterations in
carcass temperature can have signifi cant
effects on meat quality (tenderness and
WHC). Loss of circulatory and respiratory
competencies at slaughter allows accumula-
tion of metabolic heat. Carcass temperatures
can increase to over 42 ° C during the fi rst
45 – 60 minutes postmortem. At this tempera-
ture, a rapid pH decline can result in denatur-
ation of myofi brillar proteins such that WHC
is ultimately quite low, even if ultimate pH
(24 h) is within normal ranges. Rapid post-
mortem glycolysis is associated with the high

Figure 2.1. Effect of excess hydrogen ion (pH decrease) on water located in muscle tissue.