Effect of cross breeding and amount of finishing diet on growth parameters, carcass and meat composition of foals slaughtered at 15 months of age.

This trial was conducted to study the effects of cross breeding (GM: Galician Mountain; HB×GM: Hispano-Breton×Galician Mountain crossing) and finishing feed (1.5 kg vs. 3.0 kg of commercial feed in the finishing period) on growth, performance, carcass characteristics and meat quality of foals slaughtered at 15 months of age. For this study, twenty one foals of GM and HB×GM crossbred were used. Results obtained for the current study suggest an interesting potential for meat production, because the introduction of HB×GM stallions allows an advantage compared with the Galician breed, because they had better carcass weight, better conformation and the best carcass ratios. Other morphometric measurements related to the leg were also higher in HB×GM crossbred. On the other hand, the finishing diet had also significant influence in commercial cuts both in the front and hind quarter. A finishing diet with 3 kg of commercial feed increased carcass fat level. Regarding meat quality, genotype did not affect any physical-chemical trait, while finishing foals with 3 kg of fodder quadrupled intramuscular fat value and provided meat with a higher luminosity (35.9 vs. 38.2, P<0.05, for 1.5 and 3 kg concentrate/day, respectively). However, this increase in intramuscular fat was not correlated with improvements in meat textural parameters because they were not influenced (P>0.05) by either of the two effects studied. Nutritive profiles (both fatty and amino acids composition) were not influenced by genotype (P>0.05) whereas finishing effect modified almost all fatty acid finding.