Thesis (MBA)--Stellenbosch University, 2015. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The premise of this study was the hypothesis that consumers of red meat do not make their meat purchases according to the standards and value criteria set by the classification system. In light of the hypothesis, three research questions were asked: Does the consumer understand the classification system and make purchases accordingly? Does the system reflect the expectations and needs of the consumer? To what extent does this reciprocal message flow through the value chain? Essentially this study therefore on the one hand deals with the effectiveness of the red meat classification system, and on the other hand with the extent to which the consumer takes it into account when purchasing mutton and lamb. However, the study would have been regarded as incomplete if the total value chain and all role-players, the producer, abattoir owner, wholesaler, retailer and retail butcher were not brought into perspective, with the consumer as the heart of the value chain. Data generated through questionnaires were analysed by means of descriptive statistics. Closed-ended questions were used with respondents mainly from the middle to higher income groups in the main centres and metropoles. The findings of the research confirm that modern consumers do not buy red meat according to the standards and value criteria of the classification system. The decision making process during the purchasing of red meat is mainly determined by intrinsic and subjective value features. The question is, therefore, why consumers do not take the objective value traits into account. Is the system regarded as irrelevant, and/or is it too complicated? By implication the research results confirm that the red meat value chain is not altogether transparent and that the messages between the producer and the consumer are communicated ineffectively within the value chain. In light thereof it is recommended, on the one hand, that the classification system is revised and changed, because it does not succeed in meeting the needs and preferences of the modern consumer. On the other hand it is recommended that deliberate educational strategies are applied to change the attitudes and buying patterns of consumers regarding the purchasing of mutton and lamb. Consumers must be guided not to rely on their own and subjective considerations, but also to apply objective criteria with confidence. This process will inevitably also influence the effectiveness of the value chain.

The broad objective of the study was to investigate the effect of post-slaughter handling in the distribution chain on red meat quality and safety. A survey was conducted among 300 consumers and 100 meat handlers in five different municipalities (Buffalo City, Nkonkobe, Ngqushwa, Lukhanje and Amahlathi) in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa to investigate their perceptions on meat quality and safety, together with challenges faced by meat handlers during the distribution of meat from the abattoir to retailers. The microbiological profile and physico-chemical quality of red meat at different stages of the abattoir to retail outlets in the distribution chain were also determined. Swabs (n=216) and meat samples (n=450) were collected from beef, pork and mutton carcasses during the loading process of carcasses into trucks at the abattoir, when offloading carcasses at the supply points and during marketing. Physico-chemical qualities such as colour (L* - lightness, b* - redness and a* - yellowness) and meat pH measurements were taken at each point. To determine the microbiological profiles of the carcasses, four microbiological parameters were considered: Total bacteria count (general bacteria), coliform count (related to hygiene and indicator for pathogens), Escherichia coli (Gram-negative pathogen) and Staphylococcus aureus (Gram-positive pathogen). Two types of packaging (vacuum and overwrapping) were used to determine their effect on shelf-life and microbiological quality of red meat under the normal marketing conditions over a storage duration of 15 days. The results from the study showed low awareness of consumers about the pathogenic diseases which arise from meat. A strong significant association (p ˂ 0.05) between educational status and awareness on meat safety was observed. Most of the consumers perceived that quality goes beyond safety such that 35.6 percent of the respondents indicated that they did not have a problem with consuming spoiled meat, whilst the remaining 64.4 percent indicated that they would r eject spoiled meat. Although retailers indicated that they take meat safety into consideration in their shops, 92 percent of the retailers revealed that they do not perform microbial assessment of meat in their shops. A series of loading and off-loading, temperature fluctuations, environmental temperatures and ques during offloading were reported as the major challenges during transportation of carcasses from the abattoir to the supply points. The microbial counts were significantly (p<0.05) higher in samples from the commercial abattoir than in those from the communal abattoir. Escherichia coli was the predominant microbial contaminant in the samples from both abattoirs. When following the chain, total bacterial count (TBC), coliform count (CC) and the levels of E. coli contamination increased progressively between the loading and the off-loading points (5.1 to 7.9 log10 CFU/cm2; 5.0 to 5.6 log10 CFU/cm2 and 2.7 to 3.7 log10 CFU/cm2, respectively). The storage period, meat type, distance during transportation and temperature were found to have a significant impact on the microbial levels during the distribution of carcasses. Distribution stage had a significant effect (p<0.05) on some of the physico- chemical meat quality attributes and differences in the lightness (L*) and redness (a*) values between the loading, off-loading and display points were observed. Consumers perceived retailer class as one of the factors influencing meat quality, but according to the instrumental measurements retailer class did not have a significant effect on physico-chemical meat quality. However, distance and storage duration significantly (p<0.05) affected (L*) and (a*) values in the meat during distribution chain. Vacuum and overwrapping packaging significantly affected (p<0.05) the shelf life of meat. Therefore, it was concluded that post-slaughter handling during the distribution chain affects the physico- chemical, microbiological and shelf-life of meat.

Effects of Acacia karroo supplementation on meat quality of Xhosa Lop-Eared goats The objective of the study was to determine the effects of A. karroo supplementation on the quality of meat from Xhosa lop-eared goats. Eighteen castrated 4-month-old Xhosa lop-eared male kids were kept at the University of Fort Hare Farm until slaughter. At the beginning of the experiment the goats had a mean body weight of 13.5 ± 0.31 kg (mean ± S.E.) and a mean body condition score (BCS) of 3.3 ± 0.16 (mean ± S.E.). From birth until weaning the kids were kept on natural pastures with their mothers. After weaning the goats were housed in an open sided barn for a period of 60 days, and were fed 500 g/head/day of Medicago sativa hay covering their maintenance and growth needs. For the purpose of the experiment, the goats were randomly divided into two balanced treatment groups of nine goats each, supplemented group (AK) and non-supplemented group (NS). The supplemented group received an additional 200g per head per day of fresh A. karroo leaves collected each day for two months. Supplementary feed was given to the goats individually in feeding troughs. The kids were slaughtered at 60 days old and samples for meat quality assessment were taken from the Longistimus dorsi muscle. The effect of A. karroo supplementation on meat quality measurements such as ultimate pH, colour and cooking losses of meat from indigenous Xhosa lop-eared goats were determined. The effect of A. karroo supplementation on the consumer sensory characteristic scores of the meat from the indigenous Xhosa lop-eared breed was also determined. There was a significant effect of the A. karroo supplementation on the meat quality measurements except for L* and a* colour coordinates. Meat from the A. karroo supplemented goats had lower pH and cooking loss scores than that of the non-supplemented goats. Acacia karroo supplementation improves meat tenderness and juiciness. There were no significant effects of A. karroo supplementation on the flavour and off- iv flavours of the meat from the supplemented goats. However, thermal preparation and consumer background had a significant effect on the meat sensory characteristics. The cooked meat had significantly higher sensory scores than the roasted meat. Female consumers reported higher sensory scores than male consumers. Consumers of different tribes and ages also reported significantly different sensory scores of meat from indigenous Xhosa lop-eared goats. Therefore, this study indicated that A. karroo supplementation can be fed to the Xhosa lop-eared goats to improve their meat quality.

The main objective of the current study was to determine the effect of distance travelled (DT), lairage duration (LDhr) and animal-related factors (animal class, breed, sex) on pre-slaughter stress indicators, carcass characteristics, nanostructure and technological properties of beef. The study was conducted in an Eastern Cape abattoir under the Buffalo City District Municipality. Six genotypes of cattle (Beefmaster, Bonsmara, Brahman, Holstein-Friesian, Non-descript and Nguni) brought for slaughter at the abattoir on different days were used in the study. Slaughter weight (SWT), warm and cold carcass weight (WCW and CCW), fatness and conformation of each animal were measured and recorded. Representative samples of blood plasma and meat quality from the Muscularis thoracis et lumborum (LTL) were collected at slaughter and 24 hours after slaughter, respectively. Heat shock proteins 70kDa (HSPA1A), glucose (GLU), cortisol (CORT), creatine kinase (CK) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) were determined from the blood plasma. The representative LTL muscle was used to determine ultimate pH (pHu), lightness (L*), redness (a*), yellowness (b*), meat temperature (Tm), Warner Bratzler Shear Force (WBSF) and histological structure of beef. There were significant effects of distance on pHu, Tm, a*, b*, TL%, CK and LDH. Pearson correlations were observed between distance travelled (DT), creatine kinase (CK), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), ultimate pH (pHu), colour coordinates (L*, a* and b*) and Warner Bratzler Shear Force (WBSF). Principal component analysis (PCA) revealed that the 1st (pHu), 2nd (Tm) and 3rd (L*) principal components were the critical meat quality attributes. Positive relationships between carcass weights and beef quality characteristics for bovine cattle where the cumulative percentage of the first six principal component`s (PC`s) (SWT, WCW, CCW, DP, pHu and Tm contributed to 93.4 % of the total variance. Significant correlation coefficients between DT (r = 0.15), LDhr (r = 0.29), Ta (r = -0.52), Tm (r = 0.26), L* (r = 0.33), a* (r = 0.32) and WBSF (r = -0.49) were observed. Meat from Brahman (BR), Non-descript (ND) and Nguni (NG) cows had visible skeletal muscle fibres which were thin and long indicating improved tenderness of beef. Exposing animals to longer hours of transportation did not only reduce glucose levels but also increased the expression of HSPA1A and levels of cortisol. The CK and LDH were not related to beef quality. Therefore, CK and LDH can be used as indicators of animal welfare in slaughter cattle but cannot be used to predict the quality of meat. Bulls were the heaviest, although heifers had the highest dressing percentage than cows. Furthermore, the nanostructure of beef indicated that heifers had the best muscle fibres, sarcomere length and visible intercalated discs. The observed nanostructures of Nguni genotype are an indication of tender meat. Beef from heifers of Nguni had visible and tender meat with traces of intramuscular fat while males had shorter sarcomere length and tougher meat.

The objective of this study was to compare the nutrient status of full scavenging and semi-scavenging village chicken production systems. The semi-scavenging chickens were given broiler finisher mash between 14-24 weeks of age, whilst the full scavenging relied on natural foraging. The study also sought to compare the quality of meat from chickens from the two systems. After slaughtering the chickens, the crop contents were physically separated and analysed for chemical composition. Meat pH and colour were measured on the breast muscle of individual carcasses and a consumer sensory evaluation was also done on the breast muscle. The mean crop content weights per day were significantly higher in full scavenging chickens (±16.7g/day biomass) than in semi-scavenging chickens (±9.14g/day). Dry matter, calcium, and phosphorus levels were higher in the crop contents of the full than in the semi-scavenging chickens but crude protein, crude fibre and metabolisable energy were higher in the latter system. Semi-scavenging (1.3 ± 0.05kg) carcasses were heavier (P<0.05) than full scavenging ones (1.0 ± 0.06kg). The ultimate pH (24h) (pHu) of meat from full scavenging chickens (6.0 ± 0.03) was higher (P<0.05) than that of meat from the semi-scavenging chickens (5.7 ± 0.04). Meat from the full scavenging chickens had higher L* values (60 ± 1.2) than meat from the semi-scavenging chickens (47 ± 0.8). The a* value of meat of full scavenging chickens was significantly (P<0.05) less (4 ± 0.4) than that of meat from semi-scavenging chickens (15 ± 1.3). There was a significant positive (0.60) correlation between pHu and L* of meat from village chickens across rearing systems. The semi-scavenging system meat had better sensory attributes than the meat from the full scavenging system. Female consumers scored the typical flavour of village chicken meat across rearing systems higher (P< 0.05) than male consumers. The Shona consumers scored the meat higher (P< 0.05) than the Xhosa, Zulu, Ndebele and other tribes for initial juiciness, first bite impression and muscle fibre and tenderness of the chicken across rearing systems. Consumers scored of the meat from the semi-scavenging system higher (P<0.05) on initial juiciness (4.3 ± 0.20), first bite impression (4.2 ± 0.197), muscle fibre tenderness (4.5 ± 0.217) than meat from the full scavenging chickens. There were positive correlations (0.46) between aroma intensity and overall flavour intensity across both rearing systems. The semi-scavenging system produced better carcass characteristics, lighter (L*) meat and more consumer acceptable meat than full scavenging chickens. Therefore the full scavenging rearing system had better nutrient composition in its scavenging feed resource base, although the semi-scavenging systems produced chickens with better carcass, meat pH, colour and sensory characteristics than the full scavenging chickens.