Data di Pubblicazione:
2021
Abstract:
The estimated world population of water buffalo counts around 204 million head, mostly
reared for milk production. However, buffaloes also largely contribute to the meat sector, with
around 4.3 million tonnes produced in 2019, mainly derived from old animals at the end of their
productive or working life and only to a small extent from young animals. Therefore, buffalo meat
production has been generally considered unsatisfactory for both quantity and quality. In fact, the
dressing percentage is generally lower than 50% and the meat is considered of poor quality mainly
due to its dark colour and reduced tenderness. However, in recent years, the healthy properties
highlighted by some studies have led to a renewed interest in buffalo meat, with a parallel increase
in research. Therefore, this review aims at providing an updated picture on carcass and meat quality
traits in river buffalo, with special attention to the intrinsic and extrinsic factors contributing to their
variability. The research done so far has demonstrated that river buffaloes can efficiently contribute
to the quanti-qualitative production of meat, provided that the meat supply chain is specifically
organised for this purpose. The analysis of the available data also showed that further research is
needed on the factors affecting meat production in order to gain greater knowledge essential for
planning more targeted interventions.
Tipologia CRIS:
03B-Review in Rivista / Rassegna della Lett. in Riv. / Nota Critica
Keywords:
river buffalo; meat; production; quality
Elenco autori:
Liliana Di Stasio; Alberto Brugiapaglia
Link alla scheda completa:
Link al Full Text:
Pubblicato in: