Influence of the Level of Sex Hormones in the Blood of Gilts on Slaughter Characteristics and Meat Quality

SIMPLE SUMMARY: The authors aimed to investigate the possible impact of hormone levels during the reproductive cycle of gilts on the slaughter characteristics and meat quality. The levels of progesterone (P4) and LH were determined in the blood samples of the processed female pigs. Moreover, during the research, the biochemical and haematological properties of the blood were investigated. Additionally, the fat and meat content and other properties were determined. It was observed that some of the analysed properties of meat and blood varied as a result of increased levels of LH. ABSTRACT: The aim of the conducted research was to determine the impact of factors such as sex hormone levels, which vary during gilts’ reproductive cycle, on the quality of the obtained meat and slaughter characteristics of the processed gilts. The research material included a population of 60 gilts slaughtered in one of the slaughterhouses located in south-eastern Poland. After the slaughtering operations were completed, the carcasses were weighed at the classification stand. The results of the statistical evaluation of the haematological and biochemical blood parameters of the examined gilts showed that, in the tested blood samples, the concentration of progesterone had a statistically significant impact only on the level of total protein, which was higher in the blood samples of gilts with a low concentration of progesterone. It was found that carcasses of gilts with higher levels of the LH hormone were characterized by a lower meat content index by nearly 3%. It was shown that the concentration of LH affected the post-slaughter temperature of the sirloin and ham muscles. The interpretation of the obtained data was difficult since there seems to be a gap in the literature concerning the dependencies of sex hormone levels in gilts and meat quality.