Características da carcaça e qualidade da carne de búfalos (Bubalus bubalis) alimentados com cana-de-açúcar e diferentes níveis de concentrado

Abstract

Buffalo sets up a potential in the production of carcases and meat in Brazil and in the world. Even being considered similar sensorially to the bovine meat, Buffalo meat has characteristics that make it stand out, being considered healthier, have less cholesterol, less fat, less calories, more protein and more minerals than bovine. The use of diets on nutrition of buffaloes aimed at improved productivity of animals is an important factor within a production system. To obtain satisfactory results by using diets containing cane sugar in food, one must combine the same use of feed concentrates, in addition to making use of the urea to correct the low protein content. Given this, the objective of assessing the quantitative and qualitative characteristics of carcass and meat of buffalos fed with diets containing different levels of concentrate and sugar cane in the feeding of the Murrah buffaloes. The increased levels of concentrate promoted a linear increase in body weight at slaughter, front weight and rear, in hot and cold carcass weight, leg perimeter, compactness index of housing and subcutaneous fat thickness, showing that as it increases the level of energy in the diet, better yields are obtained in the casing. All treatments have obtained satisfactory results for the quality of the meat, not possessing concentrated levels effect on staining, water retention capacity, shear and losses by cooking the meat, thus obtaining a positive effect on the features the physical meat. Increasing levels of concentrate relative to the chemical characteristics of the meat, they promoted a linear reduction in the humidity, a linear increase in the intake of protein and ether extract of buffalo meat and not influence on mineral matter obtained between treatments. The assessment of the flesh by Quantitative Descriptive sensory Analysis, no differences were found for the trial of the attributes related to appearance, aroma, texture and flavor. The results found in this research show that the increased levels of concentrate in diets with sugar cane to the Murrah buffaloes, promoted improvements in quantitative, qualitative housing characteristics and sensory meat, in addition to state the potential of the species in the production of buffalo carcasses and meat quality. With this, it is suggested to carry out more research showing the importance of buffalo in meat production chain, using low-cost foods, but that meet the nutritional requirements of the same, as is the case of sugarcane that when coupled with focused is better harnessed in the feeding of these animals.