Use of agro-industrial by-products for fattening lambs: pasta factory residues. Influence on meat production and meat quality

Thirty-four male crossbred lambs were divided at weaning (40 days) into two groups, averaging the same liveweight (13.5±0.25 kg). During the experimental period, all of the animals received one of two different types of concentrate over a period of 70 days. The control concentrate contained barley as the main source of starch, the experimental feed was prepared with pasta factory residues (PFR) partially substituting the barley. Body liveweight and average daily gain during the first five weeks of the trial were significantly higher (P<0.01) in the PFR group; during the second part of the experiment no significant differences were found between the two groups. The feed conversion ratio was not affected by the diet. Slaughtering data (30 kg final body weight) showed no significant differences between groups. Chemical and fatty acid compositions of longissimus thoracis lumborum muscle were not significantly different between control and PFR lambs. No differences in sensory traits or shear force values for semimembranosus muscle were detected when comparing all carcasses in each group. Considering the overall results and the availability of PFR, this by-product could be profitably included in diets for small ruminant.