The Effects of Electrical Water Bath Stunning on Meat Quality of Broiler Produced in Accordance with Turkish Slaughter Procedures

Abstract

This study assessed the effects of electrical water bath stunning process on the meat quality of broilers processed in a commercial slaughterhouse in Turkey. Twenty-five live broilers were electrically stunned while twenty-five live broilers were not. Electrical stunning (30 V, 30 mA, 220 Hz alternative current) was applied for 17 seconds (s) in a water bath. The percentage of the blood loss was determined at 150 s after slaughter. The electrical stunning significantly decreased the percentage of the blood loss in broilers. conversely, higher pH values were observed at 15 min and 24 h post-mortem (PM) in muscle samples from broilers slaughtered following stunning compared to un-stunned controls. Electrical stunning had no significant effect on L* a* and b*colour values. The Water Holding Capacity (WHC) of meat taken from stunned broilers was significantly higher than those of the control birds. Texture analysis revealed greater toughness and firmness values in the meat of stunned broilers.

Keywords

• Meat quality
• Electrical stunning
• Texture