Development of dual-purpose cross for meat and egg production II. Meat quality of the crossbred chickens and the parent lines

The study aimed to examine the meat quality of chickens from a dual-purpose cross and its parent lines. The trial was conducted in the experimental poultry farm of the Institute of Animal Science-Kostinbrod, Bulgaria. The dual-purpose chickens were obtained by crossing female layers (Line L) and dual-purpose cocks (BB, based on Bresse Gauloise). At the age of 9 weeks the male chickens from the parent lines and the dual-purpose cross were slaughtered. Six chickens of each genotype were subjected to breast and thigh meat quality analysis. The crossbred chickens tended to have lower pH in breast but the values of this parameter were higher in their thighs. The BB line showed the poorest water-holding capacity (WHC) in both breast and thigh meat cuts. This line and the crossbreed showed lighter meat compared to the L line. Except the ash content of the breast and thigh meat that was higher in the BB line, the proximate composition did not differ between the examined lines and their cross. The L and dual-purpose chickens tended to have higher intramuscular fat (IMF) but lower protein in thigh meat than the BB line. The correlation analysis revealed clear relationships between the meat quality traits and the proximate composition, however they differed for the breast and thigh meat.