Effect of cashew nut supplemented diet, castration, and time of storage on fatty acid composition and cholesterol content of goat meat

Twenty four 5-6 months male goats were divided in two groups of castrated and intact animals and assigned into two dietary treatments, with and without the inclusion of cashew nut bran (CNB), containing 37% oil with 75% oleic acid (C-18:1). Farmers of Northeastern Brazil to improve animal performance use this material, a by-product of cashew nut processing industries. Longissimus dorsi muscle was divided in three portions, one for initial analysis of fatty acids profile and cholesterol content and the others two were frozen stored for 3 and 6 months. The addition of 13% cashew nut bran in the diet did not contribute to increase the concentration of C-18:1. Castration increased the content of cholesterol and total saturated fatty acids. During frozen storage the percentage of stearic acid (C-18:0) decreased and the amount of oleic acid (C-18:1 increased, positively changing the fatty acid profile. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.