Cholesterol content and fatty acid profile of broiler meat as affected by diet with extruded flaxseed

Abstract

The cholesterol content and fatty acids profile of white (breast) and dark meat (leg-thigh) were examined by feeding two groups (both with males and females) of 1000 birds of the Ross hybrid line by standard feed (control group – CONM and CONF) and with the addition of 6% of extruded flaxseed mixture (experimental group – EXPM and EXPF). The addition of extruded flaxseed to the diet of chickens did not affect (P>0.05) the content of cholesterol in meat, which was between 46.13 and 52.94 mg/100g in white meat and 51.31–55.47 mg/100g in dark meat. The content of α-Linolenic acid increased significantly (P<0.01) in both white [0.72(CONF)–1.62(CONM) to 2.20(EXPF)–3.03(EXPM)] and dark meat [1.75(CONF)–1.98(CONM) to 4.47(EXPM)–4.66(EXMF)], as did the content of ω-3 FA and PUFA, while the ω-6/ω-3 ratio decreased, reaching values below 6. The effect was more pronounced in the meat of females and in dark meat. By adding extruded flaxseed to chicken feed the nutritional characteristics of meat can be improved.

Keywords

• α-linolenic acid
• chicken meat
• cholesterol
• extruded flaxseed
• ω-3 fatty acids