Effects of persimmon peel supplementation on pork quality, palatability, fatty acid composition, and cholesterol level

BACKGROUND: The objectives of this study were to investigate the effects of persimmon peel (PPM) supplementation on carcass performance, pork quality, eating quality, fatty acid composition, and cholesterol concentration of the porcine longissimus dorsi muscle. RESULTS: No adverse effects of PPM supplementation were observed on carcass and meat quality characteristics among the treatment groups (P > 0.05), whereas pork loins from pigs fed a diet supplemented with 0.9 % persimmon peel (T3) showed more tender meat than did pork loins from pigs fed a control diet (P < 0.01), even though no significant difference was observed between the control and T1 group. The T3 group had higher ratio of polyunsaturated fatty acids relative to saturated fatty acids (0.33 vs. 0.28, P < 0.05) and lower total cholesterol concentration (94.4 vs. 99.1 mg/g, P < 0.05) compared to the control group. Persimmon peel appeared to have beneficial effects on fatty acid composition and cholesterol concentration, probably leading to a hypocholesterolemic effect. CONCLUSIONS: Animal diets fortified with persimmon peel represents an efficient and useful method for improving the nutritional quality of pork without impairing growth performance and eating quality properties.