Resumen

MARIEZCURRENA BERASAIN, María Antonia et al. Pork fat determination methodology standardization. Rev. mex. de cienc. pecuarias [online]. 2010, vol.1, n.3, pp.269-275. ISSN 2448-6698.

Studying pork fat content is important due to its impact on meat quality and because of the potential ability to manipulate pork fat content by either genetics or nutrition. Multiple methods exist to measure pork fat content, which can affect the type and quantity of fat recovered. Therefore, this study was designed to define and standardize the most efficient/efficacious methodology to determine fat concentration in pork samples. Fat was extracted using a gravimetric method, where the most frequently-affected variables were evaluated using a factorial arrangement (4 solvents, 2 boiling times, and 2 sample sizes). The most efficient fat extraction method consisted of using 3-gram samples with a 2:1 chloroform:methanol solvent and 50-min boiling time. This implies that the amount of fat obtained from a sample varies considerably not only as a function of analysis type, but it is also affected by both solvent and time, then extreme care must be taken when analyzing results from different methodologies.

Palabras llave : Fat extraction; Intramuscular fat; Ether; Chloroform:methanol; Pork.