Physical and Chemical Relationships of Pork Carcasses

Physical and chemical studies were made on 79 swine carcasses. An attempt was made to evaluate and determine the relationships between physical observations and chemical composition of the carcass. Based on the chemical and physical analyses, the proximate percent protein, fat and moisture content of the untrimmed (boneless) wholesale cuts of hogs weighing approximately 200 lb. was 13.2, 43.1 and 41.0, respectively. The average weight of the bone in the shoulder, ham and loin was 1.3, 1.4 and 1.8 lb., respectively. The average weight of the skin for the shoulder, loin, belly and ham was 0.63, 0.73, 0.62 and 0.84 lb., respectively. The approximate chemical composition of the pork skin was 34.9% protein, 22.6% fat, and 44.4% moisture. Correlation analyses showed that percent lean cuts was highly related to the protein content of individual cuts and to the average protein content of all cuts. The cross-sectional area of the longissimus dorsi taken at the 10th rib was also highly related to the protein contents and to percent lean cuts, although the correlations were lower. The lowest relationships were found between carcass length and the carcass traits studied. Taste panel scores indicated that tenderness was highly related with marbling (r=0.37) and juciness (r=0.63). Warner-Bratzler shear correlated significantly with taste panel tenderness (r=−.73) and with marbling (r=.25). Marbling was correlated significantly with flavor (r=0.23), but not with juiciness.