Characterisation of indigenous African cattle breeds in relation to meat quality traits

Meat quality characteristics of two Sanga (indigenous) breeds (Afrikaner and Nguni), one indigenous composite breed (Bonsmara), one foreign composite breed (Santa Gertrudis) and two continental breeds (Brown Swiss and Pinzgauer) were compared. Means were adjusted for mean overall subcutaneous fat level (4.7%). Meat tenderness was then related to certain muscle characteristics. Shear force measurements indicated that Santa Gertrudis (SG) meat was significantly less tender than that of the two continental breeds and the three indigenous breeds (P<0.05). Pairwise linear correlations showed that differences found in background toughness (connective tissue) among breeds did not have a significant effect on tenderness. However, higher myofibrillar fragmentation indices, as well as lower white muscle fibre percentages for the three indigenous breeds, especially the two Sanga breeds, proved their potential to produce meat of comparable tenderness to that of continental breeds under specific slaughter and post-slaughter conditions.