Meat Nutritional Value of Puławska Fattening Pigs, Polish Large White × Puławska Crossbreeds and Hybrids of DanBred

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

Dear authors, please correct the minor observation I added to my review comments.

 

Abstract:

In the abstract please mention the number of pigs per group and breed.

Also, mention the diet characteristics (protein and metabolisable energy) and the kg of pigs at the beginning of the experiment.

 

Introduction:

Row: 55 Add the abbreviation of breeds, for all of them

 

Material and Methods:

Please add more details about the accommodation hall: temperature/ventilation?

Row: 142 Correct: Automatic Amino Acid Analyzer AAA400 (Ingos Ltd., Prague, Czech Republic)

Please add on each table’ footnote the full name of abbreviations: PUL, PLW*PUL, DAN

 

Results and discussion:

Rows 208, 226, 264 What are WBP*PUL hybrids? Did you mean PLW*PUL?

 

 

 

Author Response

Reviewer 1,

Dear authors, please correct the minor observation I added to my review comments.

Abstract:

In the abstract please mention the number of pigs per group and breed.

Also, mention the diet characteristics (protein and metabolisable energy) and the kg of pigs at the beginning of the experiment.

Answer. Thank you for this valuable suggestion, the proposed amendments were introduced.

Introduction:

Row: 55 Add the abbreviation of breeds, for all of them

Answer. Thank you for this suggestion, the abbreviations were added.

Material and Methods:

Please add more details about the accommodation hall: temperature/ventilation?

Answer. Thank you for this remark, the relevant information with references has been completed.

Row: 142 Correct: Automatic Amino Acid Analyzer AAA400 (Ingos Ltd., Prague, Czech Republic)

Answer. Thank you for this obvious remark, the description was corrected.

Please add on each table’ footnote the full name of abbreviations: PUL, PLW*PUL, DAN

Answer. Thank you for this remark, missing information has been completed.

 

Results and discussion:

Rows 208, 226, 264 What are WBP*PUL hybrids? Did you mean PLW*PUL?

Answer. Thank you for your good point, unfortunately the authors have overlooked these errors in the text.

 

Dear Reviewer,

The authors would like to warmly thank you for all comments and suggestions, especially the critical ones, aimed at improving the scientific value of the article and eliminating the most important errors. We greatly appreciate the opportunity that we have been given to further revise the manuscript. We believe that you will share the arguments submitted by authors and find this revision fully satisfactory.

Reviewer 2 Report

LINE(s)	COMMENT
16	What is meant by “fatteners?”
49 - 50	Perhaps consider rewording: As consumer preferences continue to change, the pork industry continues to improve the quality of hogs, such as adjusting genetic lines.
57 - 58	Add rates after good feed conversion “rates”. Everything consumed will be converted; it is the rate that matters.
59-61	This sentence is unclear.
62	What is the difference between pork and pork products? Hog(s)/swine/pigs = live animal – Pork = carcass / meat
67	Recommend removing “multiracial” and refer to only crossbreeding. Multiracial is used for humans.
72	Replace: being able to with their ability (their ability to produce high-quality …)
76	Replace hybrids with cross breeding or crossbreds. Hybrid word is more common in crops/plants
83	Are commercial fattening farms the same as finishers?
98	Table 1 would look cleaner if decimals aligned.
81 , 109, & 154	Should sub headers be referred to as 2.1 , 2.2 , and 2.3? Would be easier to identify section. Section 3 sub headers were numbered.
187 - 188	Align decimals in Table 2. NQI under specification should be easily noticed. It currently blends in with other specifications. Perhaps underlined could help. NQI in foot noted should be in its own line.
189	Should read as: A,B,CMean values denoted…  Add superscript letters.
191	Have authors reviewed other manuscripts to state a percentage (range) verses assuming?
216	Tavle3. Align decimals.
218	Should read as: A,B,CMean values denoted…  Add superscript letters.
	All Tables  would look cleaner if decimals aligned.

Author Response

Reviewer 2,

 

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

LINE(s)	COMMENT	Answer
16	What is meant by “fatteners?”	Thank you for this suggestion, the authors have replaced 'fatteners' with 'rearing pigs' or ‘fattening pigs’ throughout the text
49 - 50	Perhaps consider rewording: As consumer preferences continue to change, the pork industry continues to improve the quality of hogs, such as adjusting genetic lines.	The authors will leave the original version as they believe it fully captures the meaning of the statement.
57 - 58	Add rates after good feed conversion “rates”. Everything consumed will be converted; it is the rate that matters.	Answer. Thank you for this valuable suggestion.
59-61	This sentence is unclear.	Answer. Thank you for this suggestion, this disputable sentence (with reference) was deleted.
62	What is the difference between pork and pork products? Hog(s)/swine/pigs = live animal – Pork = carcass / meat	We will try to explain the meaning of such a phrase: pork = raw pigmeat; pork products = cooked, smoked, cured meats or sausages produced from pork
67	Recommend removing “multiracial” and refer to only crossbreeding. Multiracial is used for humans.	Answer. Thank you for this valuable suggestion.
72	Replace: being able to with their ability (their ability to produce high-quality …)	Answer. Thank you for this valuable correction.
76	Replace hybrids with cross breeding or crossbreds. Hybrid word is more common in crops/plants	Answer. Thank you for this valuable suggestion.
83	Are commercial fattening farms the same as finishers?	In principle, yes, only in this particular case it was to emphasise that it was not an experimental fattening but a typical production fattening (for the market).
98	Table 1 would look cleaner if decimals aligned.	The data in the table has been corrected as suggested.
81 , 109, & 154	Should sub headers be referred to as 2.1 , 2.2 , and 2.3? Would be easier to identify section. Section 3 sub headers were numbered.	Answer. Thank you for this valuable suggestion. Sub headers were introduced in section 2.
187 - 188	Align decimals in Table 2. NQI under specification should be easily noticed. It currently blends in with other specifications. Perhaps underlined could help. NQI in foot noted should be in its own line.	Answer. Thank you for this valuable suggestion.
189	Should read as: A,B,CMean values denoted…  Add superscript letters.	Answer. Thank you for this valuable suggestion. The superscript letters were introduced.
191	Have authors reviewed other manuscripts to state a percentage (range) verses assuming?	Answer. The results were compared to literature data for domestic breeds of pigs.
216	Tavle3. Align decimals.	Answer. The data has been checked.
218	Should read as: A,B,CMean values denoted…  Add superscript letters.	Answer. Thank you for this valuable suggestion. The superscript letters were introduced.
	All Tables  would look cleaner if decimals aligned.	Answer. The data in tables has been checked.

 

Dear Reviewer,

The authors would like to warmly thank you for all comments and suggestions, especially the critical ones, aimed at improving the scientific value of the article and eliminating the most important errors. We greatly appreciate the opportunity that we have been given to further revise the manuscript. We believe that you will share the arguments submitted by authors and find this revision fully satisfactory.

Reviewer 3 Report

The work is written in a simple, clear way. The issue of the nutritional value of pork is currently an important issue, all the more so because it is attributed to a negative impact on human health. According to many people, the fat content in pork is high, which makes it negatively perceived by consumers. The results obtained in the manuscript contradict this, indicating low, and even below the optimal value, its content. Admittedly, the data on the content of intramuscular fat in the meat of Puławy pigs (the lowest content) are quite surprising. Perhaps this is due to the age and body weight of the animals on the day of slaughter and their predisposition to store fat inside the muscles. It is all the more surprising that the meat of these animals is valued for its outstanding taste, which is largely due to the higher content of intramuscular fat. But, this is by the way, because the manuscript is not about the taste of meat, but about its nutritional value.

In my opinion, the research was carried out on a fairly small population of pigs (groups of 15, 16 and 17 individuals), which may affect the results obtained. In addition, an analysis of the nutritional value should be carried out with balanced body weight of fatteners, and not only based on the same age. Then (taking into account the different genotype of animals) different results would probably be obtained.

The work is not innovative, but it concerns the current issue of disseminating knowledge about native breeds of pigs and shows that pork also has a high level of nutrients.

Author Response

Reviewer 3

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The work is written in a simple, clear way. The issue of the nutritional value of pork is currently an important issue, all the more so because it is attributed to a negative impact on human health. According to many people, the fat content in pork is high, which makes it negatively perceived by consumers. The results obtained in the manuscript contradict this, indicating low, and even below the optimal value, its content. Admittedly, the data on the content of intramuscular fat in the meat of Puławy pigs (the lowest content) are quite surprising. Perhaps this is due to the age and body weight of the animals on the day of slaughter and their predisposition to store fat inside the muscles. It is all the more surprising that the meat of these animals is valued for its outstanding taste, which is largely due to the higher content of intramuscular fat. But, this is by the way, because the manuscript is not about the taste of meat, but about its nutritional value.

In my opinion, the research was carried out on a fairly small population of pigs (groups of 15, 16 and 17 individuals), which may affect the results obtained. In addition, an analysis of the nutritional value should be carried out with balanced body weight of fatteners, and not only based on the same age. Then (taking into account the different genotype of animals) different results would probably be obtained.

The work is not innovative, but it concerns the current issue of disseminating knowledge about native breeds of pigs and shows that pork also has a high level of nutrients.

Dear Reviewer,

The authors would like to warmly thank you for all comments and suggestions, especially the critical ones, aimed at improving the scientific value of the article. We greatly appreciate the opportunity that we have been given to further revise the manuscript. In conclusion, we wanted to thank you for your positive assessment of our work.