Abstract
In recent years, damage caused by Japanese sika deer (Cervus nippon) to agricultural and forestry resources has become a problem, and the capture and utilization of the animals for meat has been promoted. We previously reported on the qualities of deer meat in the Izu area of Shizuoka Prefecture, clarifying the relationship between capture method, animal age, pH, and meat characteristics. The nutritional status of wild birds and mammals is known to depend on environment and diet, but variation in the characteristics of deer meat across the prefecture remains unknown. In this study, subjective and objective assessments were carried out and compared for the meat of deer captured in four regions of Shizuoka Prefecture: Western, Central, Eastern, and Izu Peninsula. Samples were loin and leg meat of female deer weighing 35 kg or more and estimated to be at least 3 years old, captured using buck traps in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, Fujinomiya, and Izu cities in Shizuoka Prefecture. The following quantitative measurements were carried out: L*, a*, and b* values for color (Konica Minolta CR-400 chroma meter), free amino acid-related content of raw meat (Shimadzu LC-20A HPLC), and fat melting point measurement (Yanaco micro-melting point measuring device). A panel of 40 students (18-24 years old) from the University of Shizuoka participated in the taste evaluation, assessing brightness, redness, firmness, juiciness, smell, and overall desirability. The results showed that the loins of Hamamatsu deer had significantly (p<0.05) lower values for hardness than the other regions, and that the leg meat of Hamamatsu deer had significantly (p<0.05) higher values for centrifugal water retention. Pre-ripening pH (pH 6.46 to 6.90) showed less variation in the loins of Hamamatsu deer. Regional differences in hardness may be attributed to the effect of differences in pH. As pH varies with muscle glycogen content, which is influenced by diet and physical activity, and is associated with various characteristics of meat, future studies of dietary differences are needed.
