Effect of Olive Cake in Bísaro Pig Feed on Physicochemical Composition and Fatty Acid Profile of Three Different Muscles of Dry-Cured Shoulder

Abstract

Simple Summary The use of olive cake in animal feed can be utilized for purposes that go beyond nutritional needs, in the sense of a circular economy. This study has shown that the use of olive cake does not negatively affect the physico-chemical characteristics and fatty acid profile of the final product (shoulder), which allows us to utilize this highly environmentally harmful by-product. This study also looked at the effect of curing times (fresh, 6 and 12 months curing) and, as expected, curing time was highly significant. The effect of three different shoulder muscles was also studied, and there were different behaviours due to the more external or internal location of the muscles. Abstract The purpose of this study was to assess the following effects: (1) the inclusion of olive in the animal’s diet on the dry-cured shoulder; (2) the effect of curing on three different muscles (infraspinatus, supraspinatus, and subscapular); (3) the effect of different curing times (fresh shoulder, 6 months curing, and 12 months curing). For this purpose, forty shoulders were used, followed by a cold nitrite-free curing process with controlled humidity and temperature, according to the flowchart of a company that implements highly stringent standards in terms of food safety and quality. Samples were evaluated for their physicochemical composition and lipid profile. All the physicochemical composition parameters were significantly different (p < 0.001) in the three muscles studied. As might be expected, the curing times from the fresh product to the final product were also significantly different for all the parameters studied in this work. Regarding the inclusion of olive cake, it was found that treatment with a base diet + 10% exhausted olive cake (T4) showed higher levels for the parameters NaCl, collagen, and total fat. As for the fatty acid profile, in general, the olive did not influence the final product. On the other hand, we found that the type of muscle and the curing time of the cured shoulder had a significant influence on the fatty acid profile. We should also point out that there are significant differences in the interaction between curing time and muscle, particularly in saturated fatty acids (SFAs), monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs), and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), as well as the lipid quality indices. Canonical discriminant analysis is viable for evaluating the evolution of the curing process, discriminating and classifying curing times, and evaluating the muscles of the Bísaro pork shoulder. Also, the introduction of olive cake into the animal diet does not affect the final product obtained.