This original experimental study investigated how dietary supplementation with stearic acid or palm oil influences growth performance, carcass traits, meat quality, and fatty acid composition in growing–finishing pigs. Over a 12-week feeding trial involving 150 pigs, neither stearic acid nor palm oil affected growth performance, backfat thickness, carcass weight, or meat quality parameters such as water-holding capacity, cooking loss, and drip loss. However, both fat sources significantly altered the fatty acid profile of pork tissues. Stearic acid supplementation increased stearic acid content, total saturated fatty acids, and reduced iodine values across pork belly fat, belly lean, and loin lean, resulting in a firmer and more saturated fat profile. In contrast, palm oil increased monounsaturated fatty acids, particularly oleic acid, improved MUFA/SFA ratios, and produced a more unsaturated and nutritionally favorable lipid profile. The study highlights how dietary fat source can be strategically used in swine nutrition to balance meat processing characteristics with consumer-oriented nutritional quality.
Resource type:
Peer review