Effect of the duration of pre-slaughter fasting on the technological quality indicators for cooked hams

A 24-hour fasting interval between last feed and slaughter would appear to offer the best results in terms of average ultimate pH measured on pork meat, without generating extra carcass performance-related costs for pig farmers.This series of trials showed the highest percentage of hams with a pHu between 5.6 and 6.2 was obtained from 24-hour-fasted animals. Technological performance in terms of superior-quality hams recorded at cooking were higher in cuts taken from 24-hr-fasted porkers. Slicing performance of the cooked hams was highest for animals with a 24 or 30-hour pre-slaughter fasting interval, depending on the feed system.It appears that an 18-hour pre-slaughter fasting interval is no longer sufficient, particularly in pigs wet-fed twice or three times daily and finished on straw-bedded litter, or pigs fed under a maize-based on-farm feed manufacturing system. The recommended pre-slaughter fasting interval would therefore be within the 22 to 26-hour bracket.