Effect of Halal and Conventional Slaughtering Method with CO2 and N2 Gas Stunning on Physicochemical Traits of Chicken Breast Muscle and Small Intestine

We investigated the effects of stunning methods and gas treatments during slaughter on the quality characteristics of chicken breast and small intestine. Broilers (Ross 308) were stunned and slaughtered using halal, CO 2 , or N 2 gas stunning methods (for 10 birds). After slaughter, the pH, proximate composition, color, water-holding capacity, cooking loss, and shear force of chicken breast muscle and small intestine were determined. Compared with the halal treatment, CO 2 treatment resulted in higher pH and lower cooking loss ( P <0.05), and the pH, color, and shear force of chicken breast muscle with N 2 treatment were similar to those of the halal treatment ( P >0.05). Compared with the halal treatment, the gas treatments resulted in lower pH and lightness and higher redness, yellowness, thickness, and shear force of the small intestine ( P <0.05). However, compared with the CO 2 treatment, the N 2 treatment resulted in lower pH, redness, and yellowness, and higher lightness, thickness, and shear force. Overall, compared with the halal method, our results suggest that the use of N 2 gas suppresses the discoloration and deterioration of the texture of chicken meat and small intestine caused by CO 2 gas treatment in the gas stunning method.