Effect of replacing a soy diet with Vicia faba and Pisum sativum on performance, meat and fat traits of Cinta Senese pigs

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of diets containing genetically modified organism-free legumes as a replacement of soybean on the basis of performance, carcass composition and quality of local pig meat (Cinta Senese). Twenty-four Cinta Senese barrows were divided into 3 dietary groups and were each fed with a diet containing different protein sources: soybean meal (SOY), Vicia faba (FABA) and Pisum sativum (PEA) (8 pigs for each group). The diets were isonitrogenous and isocaloric and contained approximately 14.5% crude protein and 14.8 MJ/kg of digestible energy (on dry matter). Each group was reared outdoors in a paddock of 3500 m(2). In vivo performances were not different among groups. At slaughter, differences in subcutaneous fat thickness appeared only in the outer layer, at the last thoracic vertebra level, which was lowest in the PEA group. No differences were found in the sample joint composition. With regard to the chemico-physical traits of meat and fat, the FABA group had the highest values of redness in lean and backfat, while the PEA group showed higher moisture and lower fat content in meat compared to the SOY group. Differences in the fatty acid profile of backfat were found only for the C16:1 percentage that was higher in FABA than SOY pigs. In conclusion, Vicia faba and Pisum sativum could be a good alternative to soybean in the growing-fattening of Cinta Senese pigs.