EVALUATION OF THE RABIT CARCASS AND MEAT QUALITY

The aim of the work was to analyze the carcass structure and the quality of the meat and fat oxidation of French Lop and Californian rabbit breeds. Carcass yield of the Californian rabbit breed was 50 % and the French Lop rabbit was 49.9 %. In the thing muscle of the French Lop rabbit, the protein content was 23.85 g.100 g-1 and in the musculus longissimus dorsi (MLD) − 23.31 g.100 g-1. The Californian rabbit breed had a protein content of 23.30 g.100 g-1 in the thigh muscle and 23.67 g.100 g-1 in the MLD. The intramuscular fat content of the French Lop rabbit thigh muscle was 0.92 g.100 g-1 and the back muscle was 0.99 g.100 g-1. The thigh muscle of the Californian rabbit had an intramuscular fat content of 1.10 g.100 g-1 and a back muscle of 1.07 g.100 g-1. The higher content of oleic acid was found in both breeds: in the MLD of French Lop rabbit breed had 38.32 g.100 g-1 FAME (fatty acid methyl ester) and in the MLD of Californian rabbit − 39.76 g.100 g-1 FAME. In the thigh muscle, the oleic acid content in a French Lop rabbit was of 30.76 g.100 g-1 FAME and in a Californian rabbit breed − 39.02 g.100 g-1 FAME. The docosahexaeonic acid content in the thigh muscle of the French Lop rabbit was the same as that of the Californian rabbit (0.03 g.100 g-1 FAME). Malondialdehyde content, an indicator of fat oxidation, determined after 5 days of maturation in the MLD of both breeds was the same (0.17 mg.kg-1). The content of MDA in the thigh muscle of the French Lop rabbit was 0.17 mg.kg-1 and in the Californian rabbit − 0.16 mg.kg-1. To achieve optimal carcass maturity, it is appropriate to fatten the French Lop rabbits to an older age.