Technological and sensorial meat quality of broiler chickens: effect of genotype and heat stress

New challenging environmental and geopolitical scenarios ask for sustainable productions based on animals resilient to climate changes and alternative feeds where slow-growing genotypes can fit on the possible diverse scenarios. The present study aimed to evaluate the effect on meat quality and sensorial properties of different poultry genotypes reared under alternative environmental conditions. A total of 240 broiler chickens were reared in a 3 × 2 × 2 factorial arrangement with three genotypes (Ross 308, Bionda Piemontese, and Robusta Maculata chickens), two environmental temperatures (normal and high), and two sexes. Chickens were reared in pens until slaughtering (42 and 99 days of age for Ross 308 and local breeds, respectively). Right and left breast fillets were dissected from 72 carcasses (6 per experimental group) and submitted to rheological and sensorial analyses. At the Pectoralis major muscle, Ross chickens showed the highest pH, lightness, yellowness and cooking losses (p < 0.001), while Bionda Piemontese showed the highest redness (p < 0.001). Meat from Ross chickens had higher water and lower crude protein contents, while higher ether extract content compared to the other chickens (p < 0.001). At the sensory analysis, Ross breasts had a higher juiciness compared to Bionda Piemontese while intermediate values for Robusta Maculata (p < 0.05). As for the flavour, meat of Ross chickens received a lower score for ‘brothy’ (p < 0.05) and ‘chickeny/meaty’ (p < 0.001), and a higher score for ‘wet feathers’ (p < 0.001) compared to that of local breeds. The environmental temperature did not affect meat quality traits and flavour attributes, whereas only the ‘toothpack’ texture increased (p < 0.05) when chickens were reared under high temperature. Males’ breasts presented higher pH (p < 0.001) than females which corresponded to lower lightness (p < 0.01) and yellowness (p < 0.001). Moreover, in males, breasts had higher water and lower crude protein content (p < 0.05), and scored higher hardness (p < 0.001), juiciness (p < 0.001) and chewiness (p < 0.01), and a higher salty flavour (p < 0.01) than females. In conclusion, while meat traits in slow growing local chickens, such as Bionda Piemontese and Robusta Maculata, were different rom those of fast-growing genotypes, sensorial quality was comparable from nutritional and sensorial point of view for the consumers. The effect of environmental temperature was negligible.