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A study on the basic technological properties of meat (pH, water-holding capacity, cooking loss, and meat tenderness) from a free-ranged, pearly-gray local Bulgarian population of Guinea fowl was conducted. The effect of three fattening periods (16, 20, and 24 weeks) in two consecutive economic years was investigated. The average pH values of the breast muscles, reported for the period from 25 minutes to 24 hours after slaughter, varied from 6.70 to 5.74 for the group of male fowls and from 6.80 to 5.74 for the group of female fowls, respectively. The mean pH values of the thigh muscles for the same period were: from 7.21 to 6.32 for the male fowls and from 7.53 to 6.21 for the female individuals. The data analysis showed that bird sex and age did not affect the pH values of meat. As the slaughter age increased, the values of WHC in the analyzed muscles decreased, which is the reason for the breast and thigh muscles of Guinea fowls fattened for the longest period, to be evaluated as being of the best quality. The investigation of the two types of muscles revealed that the thigh muscles have better water-holding capacity compared to the breast muscles. No significant differences between both sexes were reported for that characteristic. A significant effect of the fattening period on the cooking loss was found, varying between 26.91% and 46.16% depending on the muscle type, sex, and age of the birds. Meat tenderness was not affected by the bird sex and age at slaughter, with average values ranging from 293.09 °P to 309.75 °P. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of the fattening period on the slaughter performance of a local Bulgarian population of free-ranged pearl-gray Guinea fowls was studied. The pre-slaughter weight varied from 1041.00 to 1296.00 g in the group of female fowls and from 1029.50 to 1292.83 g in the group of male fowls, depending on the fattening period duration. The data of grill weight were 605.15–839.81 g for the females and 643.52–826.23 g for the male individuals and of bratfertig: 683.50–915.99 g and 721.82–910.52 g, respectively, depending on gender and duration of the fattening period. Grill meat varied from 459.56 to 643.07 g for a group of male fowls and from 441.15 to 649.55 g for a group of female fowls, while breast meat was 190.84–283.94 g (male) and 186.77–286.7 g (female), depending on the studied factors. The slaughter yields (bratfertig, %) ranged from 65.72% to 70.71% depending on the two factors of influence. The carcass weight (grill, %) of both sexes was 60.36% for the 16-week fattening period, over 61% for the 20-week and 64% for the 24-week fattening period. The proportions of the pectoral muscles in the carcass were higher for the older Guinea fowl, while the percentages of thigh muscles decreased from 31% to 29% with increasing of the age. The relative values of breast and leg muscles increased with the increase of the fattening period duration of the slaughtered birds. Grill’s bones had the highest values in the 16-week-old Guinea fowls (29.09%). Besides sex, the slaughter age had a significant effect on almost all the slaughter characteristics except for the weight of the by-products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]