The present study investigated the effect of a reduced protein diet in combination with different vegetable oils (sunflower seed oil or linseed oil) on carcass traits, meat quality and fatty acid profile in porcine muscle. Forty male Landrace pigs were allocated into four experimental groups (each n = 8) and one control group (n = 8) at a live weight of approximately 60 kg. The pigs were fed ad libitum from 60 kg to 100 kg live weight and restricted to 2.8 kg/day until they reached 120 kg. In contrast to other studies, the intramuscular fat content (IMF) did not increase in animals of groups fed a reduced protein diet and vegetable oils. The IMF ranged between 1.2% and 1.4%. The growth performance and meat quality of the longissimus muscle was not affected by the diet, but the average daily gain (ADG) and drip loss were affected. The muscle fatty acid concentrations were significantly affected by the diet, resulting in higher n-3 FA concentrations up to 113 mg/100 g muscle and lower n-6/n-3 PUFA ratio for pigs fed linseed oil-containing high- and reduced protein diets, compared to sunflower seed oil-containing diets.
Keywords: carcass traits; fatty acids; linseed oil; meat quality; pig muscle; reduced protein diet; sunflower oil.