Meat Quality Characteristics of Kazakh Sheep

In order to evaluate the meat quality of Kazakh sheep, 30 12-month-old Kazakh sheep were randomly selected and slaughtered, and the longissimus dorsi muscle was taken for quality determination and nutritional composition analysis. Meat quality indexes such as pH value and the color parameters lightness (L^*), red (a^*), and yellow (b^*) were measured using portable meters. Amino acid and mineral contents were determined according to relevant standards using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The pH value of the meat varied from 5.65 to 6.24. The L_{24 h}^*, a_{24 h}^* and b_{24 h}^* were 49.49, 16.31 and 9.77, respectively, and did not significantly vary between the genders. Drip loss was significantly (P < 0.05) lower and fatty acid content was highly significantly (P < 0.01) lower in ram meat than in ewe meat, but there was no significant difference in protein content between them. Besides, the contents of essential amino acids (EAA), non-essential amino acids (NEAA), and total amino acids (TAA) in ram meat were higher than those in ewe meat. Among the 16 amino acids tested, lysine and glutamic acid were the most abundant with average values of 2.14% and 3.17%, respectively. In terms of minerals, Kazakh mutton was rich in macroelements including sodium, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, and calcium, etc., as well as micronutrients including iron, copper, zinc, and manganese, etc.. Accordingly, Kazakh mutton had good eating quality and high nutritional value. Breeding planning and farming management need to be strengthened to optimize the meat performance of Kazakh sheep in order to meet the market demand and provide more high-quality meat choices for consumers.