Research at Wroclaw University of Economics in Poland has revealed that muscle protein from two flocks of geese had a high nutritional value. The values of the essential amino acid index of breast muscle proteins for the Rypinska and Garbonosa flocks.

In a paper published in Poultry Science, Andrzej Okruszek and colleagues report that the aim of the study was to compare the chemical and amino acid composition of breast (pectoralis major) and thigh (biceps femoris) muscles in 17-week-old geese from two Polish conservative flocks: Rypinska (Ry; n=20) and Garbonosa (Ga; n=20). The geese were fed ad libitum during the experimental period on the same complete feed.

Genotype affected the moisture and fat content of breast and thigh meat. The Ga geese were characterised by higher moisture as well as lower fat lipid content than the Ry breast and thigh muscles.

The amino acid proportions of meat proteins depended on the goose flock and type of muscles, where significant differences were found. The proteins of Ga breast muscles contained more glutamic acid, glycine, lysine, tryptophan, histidine and methionine but less aspartic acid, proline, serine, leucine, valine, phenyloalanine, tyrosine and threonine than the Ry geese (P<0.05). The proteins of Ry thigh muscles were characterised by higher content of proline, serine, and essential amino acids (without lysine and methionine) and lower glutamic and asparagine acid, alanine and glycine than the Ga flock.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations/World Health Organization (1991) standard, tryptophan was the amino acid limiting the nutritional value of meat proteins of Ry breast muscles (amino acid score for tryptophan = 90 per cent). Except for tryptophan, the meat proteins of the investigated raw materials contained more essential amino acids than the standard. The total content of essential amino acids for all investigated muscles was also higher (52.51 to 55.54 per cent) than the standard (33.90 per cent).

Okruszek and colleagues conclude that it is evident that muscle protein from both flocks of geese have been characterised by high nutritional value. The values of the essential amino acid index of breast muscle proteins were similar in both flocks.

Reference

Okruszek A., J. Woloszyn, G. Haraf, A. Orkusz and M. Werenska. 2013. Chemical composition and amino acid profiles of goose muscles from native Polish breeds. Poult. Sci. 92(4):1127-1133. doi: 10.3382/ps.2012-02486

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April 2013