Influence of dietary inclusion of exhausted bergamot by-product in pigs on animal performance, fatty acid profile and oxidative stability of meat and meat products

An investigation has been carried out on the effect in pigs diet of supplementation with exhausted bergamot by-product, stemming from pharmaceutical industry after extraction of phenolic compounds, on growth performance and on the quality of meat and meat products. Twenty pigs were assigned to two dietary treatments and fed a conventional concentrate (control) or a con-centrate including exhausted bergamot by-product at the level of 15% on a DM basis (EB). No significant differences between dietary treatments were found for final weight (P = 0.243), carcass weight (P = 0.679), dry matter intake (P = 0.321). In EB pork, the proportion of docosapentaenoic acid was significantly increased (P < 0.05); it tended to have a greater proportion of n-3 PUFA (P = 0.09) and the n-6/n-3 PUFA ratio was lower in EB treatment (P = 0.01). In salami from EB pigs fed, the proportion of α-linolenic acid and the total n-3 PUFA were higher than in the control group (P < 0.001). In salami, TBARS value was lower after 5 days of storage (P < 0.001) in the EB group. Therefore, the present results suggest that the inclusion of exhausted bergamot by-product in pig diet resulted in a qualitative improvement of meat and meat products.