Current Nutritional Approaches to Maintaining and Improving Broiler Meat Quality: Part 1, Diet Manipulation and Feeding Management

Abstract

Simple Summary Poultry meat is an important source of food worldwide, and its consumption is expected to continue increasing. However, the very rapid growth of modern broiler chickens can negatively affect some aspects of meat quality and increase the occurrence of breast muscle problems. This review examines recent nutritional and feeding strategies that can help maintain or improve the quality and nutritional value of broiler meat. Reducing dietary protein while providing sufficient essential amino acids can maintain desirable meat quality and may reduce feeding costs. Different dietary fat sources can modify the fatty acid profile of meat; most sources leave pH largely unaffected, although some (e.g., soybean oil, rice bran oil) alter color and texture traits such as lightness, redness, or shear force depending on the specific oil and inclusion level used. Omega-3-rich ingredients such as fish oil, linseed products, and marine algae can increase beneficial omega-3 fatty acids in meat, generally with limited effects on pH and color, though higher inclusion levels of some sources (e.g., DHA-rich microalgae) can increase drip loss and shear force. Enzyme supplementation can help maintain meat quality when lower-energy diets or less digestible feed ingredients are used. Feed restriction can help reduce breast muscle problems and, in most of the studies reviewed, did not adversely affect major physical meat quality traits. In addition, a moderate pre-slaughter fasting of approximately 8–12 h may help minimize the stress-related deterioration of meat quality. Overall, appropriate nutritional and feeding strategies can support meat quality and may contribute to the production of nutritionally valuable meat for consumers.