Rabbit and quail: Little known but valuable meat sources

In the actual scenario of increasing demand of animal food and the need to develop sustainable production systems, rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) and quail (Coturnix japonica) represent animal species of undeniable potential, profoundly linked to human’s eating habits in several parts of the World, yet not fully exploited. Given the remarkable adaptability of quail and rabbit to different farming contexts, they can be successfully farmed both in specialised and technologically advanced production systems targeting market diversification, as well as in such areas of the World where malnutrition is a severe issue and technological limitations are present. Together with the above-mentioned socio-cultural aspects, rabbit and quail possess intrinsic traits that make them meat species of interest to improve the sustainability of the livestock sector, challenge of utmost importance for present and future development strategies. Furthermore, available nutritional data indicate that quail and rabbit provide food (meat) that has the potential to improve the nutritional adequacy of any diet. It also emerged that about 130 g of rabbit and quail meat are sufficient to meet the daily dietary recommendations for essential amino acids provided by the World Health Organization. Despite the dietary quality of the meat obtained from these two animal species, the present review also unveils that, while the factors affecting meat quality have been extensively studied, little focus has been devoted on those specifically affecting the protein content and quality, thus emphasising that this is a key aspect for future researches.