Relationship of chilling rate and location within muscle on the quality of ham and loin muscles

Halothane negative Durocs (n=36) were slaughtered, and subjected to: accelerated chill (AC: -30C for 2 h, with air circulation, followed by equilibration at 4C for 20-22 h), conventional chill (CC: 4C for 22-24 h with water sprayed ever), 2 h until 12 h postmortem), and slow chill (SC: 10-12C for 12 h followed by equilibration at 4C for 10-12 h). Color, pH, and drip loss were determined for the Semimembranosus (SM) Biceps femoris (BF), Longissimus thoracis (LT), and Longissimus lumborum (LL). In the ham muscles, AC decreased b* values and drip loss. Decreased drip loss was restricted to the outer sites. Ham muscles were darkest in the mid location and lightest in the inner locations. In the Longissimus, AC decreased pH but did not affect color or drip loss. Compared to SC, AC proved beneficial, however, AC had no advantages over CC in pigs with minimal predisposition to quality problems.