Influence of Breed on the Organoleptic Properties of Rabbit

Abstract: An investigation was made on the influence of breed on the organoleptic characteristics of rabbit. The experiment was carried out at the rabbitry unit of the Department of Environmental Biology and Fisheries, Adekunle Ajasin University Akungba-Akoko, Ondo state. Forty eight (48) rabbits which include California white, Palomino brown, New Zealand white and Havana black were used for this study. At 12 weeks of age, rabbits were slaughtered and cooked samples were evaluated on a 9-point hedonic scale for colour, flavour, taste, juiciness, tenderness, texture and overall acceptability. The breed of rabbit had significant (P<0.05) influence on the flavour, tenderness, juiciness and overall acceptability of the meat samples. Meat samples from Havana black rabbit had the best ranking for flavour, tenderness, juiciness and overall acceptability while the Californian breed was the least preferred. However, the influence of breed was not significant (P>0.05) on the colour and texture of rabbit meat. Meat from New Zealand white and Palomino brown rabbit had the similar ranking for flavour and juiciness. Male rabbit meat was preferred to female rabbit meat in colour, flavour, tenderness, juiciness, texture and overall acceptability. In conclusion, Havana black rabbit meat had better organoleptic traits compared with meat from New Zealand white, Californian and Palomino brown rabbit.