Research Article

Influence of selected factors on the weight of internal organs of fatteners

Krzysztof Tereszkiewicz¹, Piotr Molenda², Kazimierz Pokrywka³

¹Rzeszów University of Technology, Poland

²Rzeszów University, Poland

³State Higher Vocational School in Krosno, Poland

1. Acta Sci. Pol. Zootechnica, 10(4), 2011, 149‒158

Abstract. The aim of the study was the evaluate the influence of breed, meat and fat-content on the weight of chosen internal organs. The research involved 120 fatteners of the Polish Landrace, Polish LargeWhite, Pietrain and Duroc breeds of pigs. After slaughter and veterinary examination, internal organs were obtained: the heart, lungs, liver, spleen and kidneys. The organs were weighed to an accuracy of 0.01kg. On the basis of the weight of the organs and the weight of the fatteners before slaughter, the indicator of the proportion of the examined organs to the bodyweight of fatteners was calculated. The research has shown a significant influence of breed on the weight of internal organs. Especially significant differences were observed between the Polish Large White and Duroc breeds. Statistically significant influence of fat- and meat-content on the weight of organs was also observed. Fatteners with lower fat and higher meat-content were characterized by higher weight and proportion of the heart, lungs and liver.

Keywords: breed, fat content, fattener, meat content, internal organs, pig