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Feed withdrawal is a recommended practice for on-farm preparation of pigs before slaughter in order to prevent animal losses or travel sickness during transport, to reduce carcass contamination due to lower risk of gut contents spillage during carcass evisceration and to improve pork quality. A feed withdrawal between 16 and 24 h appears to be an acceptable compromise to obtain optimal carcass yield and meat quality and safety. This study aims to evaluate the effects different starting time of feed withdrawal on behaviour during loading and lairage on meat quality (pH, colour and drip loss) in pigs. A total of 700 pigs were distributed into two groups. One group (FARM) was fasted for 18 h at the farm before transport and for 6 h before slaughter (including 2 h transport and 4 h lairage), while for the other group (PLANT) fasting time started at the departure from the farm (2 h transport plus 22 h lairage). Total fasting time was 24 h before slaughter for both groups.
Fasting treatments did not influence blood parameters. PLANT pigs had longer fights than FARM pigs during lairage and produced darker and drier loins. Based on the results of this study, the choice of applying most of the fasting time at the slaughterhouse rather than at the farm may not be appropriate as it prevents pigs from resting before slaughter and increases the risk for DFD-like pork production due to increased activity (fighting) in mixed groups of pigs that have to be kept in lairage for long time.
Dalla Costa, F. A., Devillers, N., da Costa, M. P., & Faucitano, L. (2016). Effects of applying preslaughter feed withdrawal at the abattoir on behaviour, blood parameters and meat quality in pigs. Meat science, 119, 89-94. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.meatsci.2016.03.033