A2O-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, December 23, 2000
ANDY ANDREWS
Lancaster Farming Staff
NEW HOLLAND (Lancaster
Co.) To improve the industry,
several pork processors are
making great strides toward car
rying out their own quality as
surance programs on a variety
of levels.
Two pork packing representa
tives spoke Tuesday morning at
the 42nd annual meeting and
Pork Production Forum of the
LanChester Pork Council at
Yoder’s Restaurant, New Hol
land. About 85 producers and
agri-industry representatives at
tended.
About two years ago, Gary
Neuman, manager of the kill
floor and chair of the Pork Qual
ity Committee at Leidy’s, Inc.,
Souderton, traveled to Kansas
City, Mo. to attend the first
annual Stocking Conference,
sponsored by the American
Meat Institute. There, Neuman
met and spoke with Dr. Temple
Grandin, an animal behavior
specialist and assistant professor
of animal science at Colorado
State University.
Grandin has designed many
different types of animal hold
ing and management facilities
throughout the country.
Neuman, who has worked for Leidy’s for
about 23 years in many departments, devised
a 20- page “processors’ list,” that not only
provided information on identifying stressed
hogs, but other factors to ensure proper hog
handling procedures to ensure meat quality.
Neuman believes that handling the hogs
until they are processed is more critical than
genetics.
“Handling is more a factor in meat quality
more so now than genetics,” he told those at
tending the forum.
If you don’t beat the hogs, or use shockers,
and handle hogs in proper groups, meat qual
ity improves.
Simply using slappers and the “voice”
works “very good for us,” said Neuman.
Neuman’s experience is that a stressed hog
results in a meat condition called PSE, an ac
ronym meaning “pale, soft, and exudative,”
or “wet pork.” With PSE, there’s “a lot of
lost money there,” Neuman said.
Summertime is especially critical to con
trolling hog stress.
When the animal is stressed, what happens
is a high level of lactic acid appears in the
muscle, creating the condition called “wet
pork.” As a result, the animal cannot hold
water and any flavorings that can accompany
it. Pork chops are pale with no marbling and
tough to chew.
With sausage, no seasoning ingredients can
bind with the meat. It doesn’t have flavor. In
the case, the meat leaks. The meat itself is
very pale, with no color.
The combination of heat and humidity,
with summertime temperatures at 85-90 de
grees at 90-100 percent humidity, and im
proper handling can make a deadly
combination. If a hog is panting and foaming
at the mouth, then PSE pork can result.
All employees are trained in the 20-page
list. Shocker use is limited, to prevent bruis
ing.
Tom Leidy brought in a ham sample that
showed mishandling. The product can’t be
used for ham instead, the bruised item is
made into a smoked product. PSE results in a
loss of weight, with no water-holding capac
ity, with a pH below 5.7. (Ideally, a pH of 6.0-
6.3 is acceptable, Neuman noted.)
Leidy said that cooling the new lean pork,
to get the “body heat out of the pork” on the
rail within two hours, is critical for process
ing.
Tom Moyer, supervisor of procurement op
erations, Hatfield Quality Meats, will soon be
setting up a Truckers Quality Assurance
(TQA) program.
The program will focus on the work of
Temple Grandin on handling hogs properly.
A video was shown at the forum. The video
was developed with the help of the National
Pork Producers Council in cooperation with
the Animal Meat Institute, universities, and
industry.
Quality Assurance Programs Alive A
In the video, emphasis was
placed on handling hogs in
small groups, proper under
standing of the animals’ “flight
zone,” the importance of well
designed and clean facilities and
equipment, and other factors.
Handling 6-8 hogs at a time
and never running after and
striking them helps ensure good
quality meat.
Improper handling can result
in dark, firm and dry (DFD)
meat. Excessive darkness is un
desirable, resulting in lower
shelf life in the case.
Bruised meat is simply unac
ceptable, costing the industry
millions of dollars. PSE costs the
industry about $3O million an
nually.
Three important procedures
include resting the animals 2-3
hours before slaughter, provid
ing the animals with fresh, clean
water, and handling them
calmly. If the weather is hot and
humid, hogs should be sprayed
with cool water.
Grandin, noted Moyer, often
will go to a “pig’s-eye view” to
see what the pig is going through
from the dock through the shoot
(Turn to Page A2l)
Speakers at the LanChester Pork Council annual meeting in New Holland were, from
left, Rob Meinen, Penn State senior extension associate; Gary Neuman, manager of the
kill floor and chair of the Pork Quality Committee at Leidy’s, Inc.; Tom Moyer, supervisor
of procurement operations, Hatfield Quality Meats; and Bob Mikesell. Penn State exten
sion.
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