Meat production from entire male pigs : performances, meat quality and possible solutions to the boar taint problem

Abstract

Early castration of male pigs induce dramatic changes in the metabolism of the animals. Lipid deposition and adipose tissue growth are enhanced whereas protein deposition and muscle growth are reduced. Entire male pigs exhibit markedly improved feed efficiency and carcass composition. Meat from entire males differs slightly for chemical composition as compared to castrates. The more insaturated fat in boars may be a problem for some processed products. However, boar taint is the most important drawback of entire male meat. Boar taint is mainly due to the presence of skatole and androstenone, exhibiting fecal and urinary odour respectively. The respective contribution of each compound to boar taint is still poorly understood. Tainted meat may be used for processing. There is no entirely satisfactory method for sorting tainted meats on the slaughter lines. A preliminary screening is possible, using the measurement of Cowper’s gland development. In some particular cases, such a screening might enable an extension of boar meat production. At the present time there is no way of producing boars that could be certified as taint-free. Genetic and immunology offer promissing ways of getting rid of the boar taint problem : further research is needed for an adaptation of these methods from the laboratory scale to the world of production.