Comparison of pork belly characteristics and weights of primal cuts between gilt and barrow of Landrace × Yorkshire × Duroc pigs measured by AutoFomIII

Currently, pigs breed in Korea are LYD (Landrace × Yorkshire × Duroc) crossbred pigs. Pigs used as fresh meat are gilts and barrows. However, the current supply of pork is not satisfying Korean consumers. In addition, the comparison of carcasses between gilts and barrows only studies carcass weight, backfat thickness, or meat quality, and there are very few studies comparing carcass characteristics. The purpose of this study was to compare characteristics of 7 primal cuts of gilts and barrows as measured by AutoFom III. A total of 350,179 pigs were used, including 176,461 gilts and 173,718 barrows. Characteristics of seven primal cuts were measured using AutoFom III. In the case of carcass weight, there was no significant difference in grade 1+. For all other survey items except for grade 2, gilts showed significantly (p < 0.05) higher values. For all grades except for pork belly, amounts of the remaining six primal cuts were higher in gilts (all p < 0.05,). In addition, the ratio of intermuscular fat in the pork belly of barrows showed a higher value than that in the pork belly of gilts (p < 0.05). The amount of pork belly, which is the most popular among consumers in Korea, not only produced more production than gilts in barrows, but also showed a higher value than gilts in barrows for the ratio of intermuscular fat affecting taste. In summary, gilts produced higher yields than barrows in all parts except pork belly. For the production of only pork belly, barrows showed higher production than gilts.