Utilização da espessura de toucinho como ferramenta na avaliação nutricional de suínos na fase de terminação

Abstract

Pork production is extremely important in Brazil and is a significant part of the country's agricultural sector. In recent years, Brazil's pork production and exports have become world leaders. The country has a large pig herd spread across several regions, with the states of Santa Catarina, Rio Grande do Sul, Paraná and Minas Gerais standing out as important pig production centers.The Brazilian pork market faces several challenges in order to provide quality, healthy, and sustainable products. The demand for quality meat products is increasing among consumers, which has encouraged a series of studies to find ways to reduce the fat deposited on pig carcasses, increase the amount of lean meat produced and improve animal performance. Proper pig nutrition is crucial in pig farming, representing a fundamental aspect of management due to its high cost. Therefore, phase-based feeding is widely used in pig farming to ensure balanced, efficient, and cost-effective feeding according to the animal's life stage, making an even more profitable activity. Based on this, a study was carried out on the influence of feed composition in relation to bacon thickness in live finishing pigs, knowing that, in their final phase, ractopamine is used with the intention of promoting an increase in protein deposition and a reduction in fat deposition in the carcass, without affecting the quality of the pork in relation to color, marbling, firmness and pH.