Stunning method in broiler chickens meat processing

Quality is a variable concept, which involves many factors, depending on the consumer market. In meat production, the concern with environmental aspects, animal welfare and the health and safety of workers is increasing. This work studied the effect of controlled atmosphere stunning of broilers on meat features and biochemical parameters for stress. Cobb broilers were stunned by electrical stunning and by controlled atmosphere with 70% CO2 and 70% CO2 + 30% Argon. After stunning, serum levels of glucose, lactate and corticosterone were compared with those of broilers at rest, immediately before transportation and slaughter and after 12 h of feed withdrawal (control group). At slaughter, blood volume drained during bleeding was not different for the stunning methods tested, ranging from 3.3 to 3.4% birds weight. This finding was important to demonstrate that gas stunning was not responsible for the animals′ death. Final pH in breast (6.1 to 6.2) and thigh (6.3 to 6.5) also did not vary among the different stunning methods (P > 0.05). Lightness (L = 60.55) and redness (a = +8.94) values found for breasts from electrical stunning showed that they were darker and redder (P < 0.05), probably due to changes in blood pressure. Glucose and corticosterone levels were not different between gas stunned birds (302.45 to 315.7 mg/dl and 55.71 to 72.49 ng/ml respectively) and birds at rest (305.95 mg/dl and 50.65 ng/ml) (P > 0.05). These stress indicators were higher (337.65 mg/dl for glucose and 104.13 ng/ml for costicosterone) when electrical stunning was used (P < 0.05). Lactate concentrations were lower (5.4 mmol/l) for birds at rest (P < 0.05) but not different for all stunning methods tested (7.3 to 8.1 mmol/l; P > 0.05). These results show that serum glucose may be used as a stress indicator in birds, with the advantage of being a quick and cheap biochemical test. Gas stunning favored birds′ management during slaughter and so reduced workers′ effort and injury hazard and the amount of feces and dust in the room. To make this method available for a large scale process, adjustments in equipments will be necessary to avoid delays in the processing line.

Insensibilização de frangos de corte em atmosfera controlada na promoção do bem estar animal: Diego Augusto Bitencourt. -

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Estimulação elétrica com eletrodos não implantáveis no tratamento da bexiga hiperativa em adultos: revisão sistemática de ensaios clínicos randonizados

Pós-graduação em Bases Gerais da Cirurgia - FMB

Efeitos da corrente elétrica contínua e do sulfato de zinco administrado pela iontoforese transdérmica sobre a cicatrização da pele de ratos diabéticos induzidos pela aloxana: análise morfológica e ultraestrutural

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Eletronarcose no abate de frangos de corte: Iderlipes Luiz Carvalho Bossolani. -

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Avaliação dos parâmetros de insensibilização e os impactos na qualidade da carne de perus (Meleagris gallopavo)

Brazil is the third largest producer and exporter of turkey meat, especially in Paraná state, with the largest production volume. In worldwide the animal welfare is a prerequisite for food quality of animal origin, especially in Europe. The Regulation of European Community No 1099/2009 provides requirements for poultry stunning that associate with animal welfare as a means to minimize the pain and suffering from the slaughter. Improper application of callousness should produce low-quality meat, and significant industry losses. This Research aimed to evaluate the impacts on the quality of meat from turkeys, applying electrical stunning parameters established in the Regulation No 1099/2009 of the Council of 24 September 2009. Was applied an outline with 8 tests set equidistantly to frequency, and set parameters for current and voltage, and a control test. Were conducted qualitative assessments of hematoms and bruises / fractures in carcasses, hematoms, blood splashed and bleeding in turkey breast, and quantitative pH, color (L *), water holding capacity and shear force in turkey breast. The individual assessments showed no significant difference (p>0,05). In multivariate cluster analysis was the formation of two distinct groups: group 1 - 50 Hz to 200 Hz (low frequency) and group 2 - 633 Hz to 1500 Hz (high frequency), which showed significant difference (p= 0,016). In principal component analysis multivariate, the group 1 tend to have a higher incidence of bruising, blood splashed, bleeding and water holding capacity in breast turkeys, and bruises / fractures and hematoms on carcasses. The Group 2 tends to have a lower incidence of these parameters, and higher pH values, shear force and color (L *). Positive correlation was obtained for the parameters pH and shear force (r= 0.7506, p=0.0198); bleeding and splashed blood (r= 0.8811, p= 0.0017), and negative correlation to color (L*) and splashed blood on breast (r= -0.7889; p= 0.0115); breast hematoms and shear force (r= -0.7844; p= 0.0123). It has been observed that at lower frequencies stunning tends to have higher incidence of defects in the carcasses and turkey breast. The use of high frequencies in stunning, create smaller quantity of trimming, and an increase in turkey breast volume produced, with a financial gain of approximately R$250,000.00 / year. Moreover, there is no need increase the workers to do the trimming tasks and, therefore, higher financial results for companies. Therefore, we recommend the use of high frequencies in the stunning of turkeys.

Creating an asset registry for railway electrical traction equipment with open standards

An asset registry arguably forms the core system that needs to be in place before other systems can operate or interoperate. Most systems have rudimentary asset registry functionality that store assets, relationships, or characteristics, and this leads to different asset management systems storing similar sets of data in multiple locations in an organisation. As organisations have been slowly moving their information architecture toward a service-oriented architecture, they have also been consolidating their multiple data stores, to form a “single point of truth”. As part of a strategy to integrate several asset management systems in an Australian railway organisation, a case study for developing a consolidated asset registry was conducted. A decision was made to use the MIMOSA OSA-EAI CRIS data model as well as the OSA-EAI Reference Data in building the platform due to the standard’s relative maturity and completeness. A pilot study of electrical traction equipment was selected, and the data sources feeding into the asset registry were primarily diagrammatic based. This paper presents the pitfalls encountered, approaches taken, and lessons learned during the development of the asset registry.

Power system stability analysis based on descriptive study of electrical indices

In a power network, when a propagation energy wave caused by a disturbance hits a weak link, a reflection is appeared and some of energy is transferred across the link. In this work, an analytical descriptive methodology is proposed to study the dynamical stability of a large scale power system. For this purpose, the measured electrical indices (angle, or voltage/frequency) following a fault in different points among the network are used, and the behaviors of the propagated waves through the lines, nodes and buses are studied. This work addresses a new tool for power system stability analysis based on a descriptive study of electrical measurements. The proposed methodology is also useful to detect the contingency condition and synthesis of an effective emergency control scheme.