The Centre has launched a three year project to develop methods to predict and promote marbling in pork. Marbling, or intramuscular fat, significantly affects the flavor, juiciness and tenderness of pork as well as other meats.
Centre general manager Brian Sullivan says there’s lots of variability in marbling but the industry doesn’t have a lot of control over it.
Pigs will go to market and somewhere along the line after slaughter and through processing there may be some sorting to try to find pork that has the desired level for different markets. This will give the industry the tools to better evaluate pigs before they get to market and also to select and manage them to produce desired levels (the demand for marbling varies per country).
[Source: Farmscape.ca]
