Mineral profile of meat cuts
It is worth noting that the average sodium content found in the raw beef from our research exceeded those found in raw meat samples from Australia (0.010 mg/100 g), the United Kingdom (0.007 mg/100 g) and Denmark (0.006 mg/100 g), as reported by
Belhaj et al., (2021). Additionally, as cattle and human beings are intrinsically connected to each other, protection of cattle from diseases and unnecessary suffering should become prime responsibility of human
(Kumar et al., 2017).
Iron
The iron concentrations found in the meat cuts were reliable, with the findings reported by
Boccie et al. (2005) at 0.427±0.1 mg/100 g. However, the results reported by
Pilarczyk (2014) were significantly different from the current study.
Magnesium
Magnesium is an essential mineral with important and extensive roles in human health, including muscle and nerve function, immune system function and bone health (
Pilarczyk, 2014). In the current study, the Boran chuck cut exhibited the highest average magnesium (Mg) concentration, while the Senga sirloin cut showed the lowest average concentration, as indicated in Table 1. These findings align with the results reported by
Destefanis et al., (1997), which showed a comparable Mg concentration of 0.28 mg/100 g. The Mg values for the cattle types and cuts, namely, Boran (sirloin (0.265±0.01) and chunk (0.269±0.02), Senga (sirloin (0.229±0.01) and chunk (0.248±0.06)) and Sheko (sirloin (0.228±0.02 mg/100 g) and chunk (0.234±0.01 mg/100 g), are stated in Table 1. There was a significant difference (p<0.05) between the meat samples of Boran and Senga and Boran and Sheko cattle. The values of Mg were comparable to those reported by
Destefanis et al., (1997). The difference in mineral concentration is probably due to the breed factor. According to
Tizioto et al., (2014), the breed had a significant influence on trace elements of Mg (P<0.001).
Potassium
The highest value for K was 0.149±0.02 mg/100 g and the lowest was 0.053±0.02 mg/100 g for Boran chunk and Sheko sirloin cuts, respectively (Table 1). A significant difference (p<0.05) was observed between Sheko and the two cattle types (Boran and Senga). There was no significant difference (p>0.05) between the meat samples of Boran and Senga. The mean K content in raw beef of the two cuts of the three cattle types Boran (sirloin and chunk), Senga (sirloin and chunk) and Sheko (sirloin and chunk) was 0.141±0.02, 0.149±0.02, 0.147±0.02, 0.144±0.02, 0.053±0.02 and 0.054±0.01 mg/100 g, respectively, which was higher than the report on beef and pork (267.41 ppm) (
Basalan, 1995). These values were comparable with commercial beef samples (152±15 mg kg
-1) reported by
Flowers et al., (2018). Boran chuck had the highest average potassium (K) concentration among cuts, while Sheko sirloin had the lowest (Table 1). However,
Stojanovic et al., (2017) a reported higher K content in beef (217.51 mg/100 g) compared to our findings. These elements affect beef mineral content and muscle-related processes, potentially influencing meat quality
(Fallow et al., 2017).
Selenium
Selenium (Se) is an important mineral with health benefits
(Sakowski et al., 2022). Cabrera found similar selenium concentrations in Hereford and Braford meat in our study.
Tang et al., (2021) observed varying selenium levels in different beef brands.
Ramos et al., (2012) noted higher selenium content in cattle meat from mineral-rich grazing areas. The mean concentrations of Se in the three cattle types of meat cuts (sirloin and hunk) ranged from Boran, Senga and Sheko and were 0.098±0.04-0.111±0.04, 0.106±0.04-0.120±0.03 and 0.040±0.01- 0.066±0.03 mg/100 g, respectively (Table 1). There was a significant difference (p<0.05) between Sheko and Boran as well as Sheko and Senga in selenium content among the meat samples, but there was no significant difference between Boran and Senga cattle types. The report of
Hailu et al., (2022) was not in agreement with the current study on the Hereford (0.42 and 1.20 mg/kg wet tissue) and Braford breeds (0.49 and 1.3 mg/kg wt). The current study showed that there is a lower selenium concentration in the cuts of all the selected cattle types.
Almani et al., (2020) reported that the higher prevalence of Se deficiency in Ethiopian cattle might be used to differentiate the Se content in the meat. In addition, the composition of feeds also affects the contents of the meat
(Rajkumar et al., 2023).
Manganese
No breed differences were observed in this study. Hereford cuts had manganese concentrations of 0.05-0.17 mg/kg and Branford cuts had concentrations of 0.04-0.48 mg/kg, based on
Almani et al., (2020). In contrast to
Tang et al., (2021), the study found higher manganese levels.
Copper
The findings conveyed by
Arthington et al., (2021), with a copper concentration of 0.65 mg/kg or 0.0006 mg/g, were lower than the results found in this study for Senga cuts.
Zinc
Between Boran sirloin and Sheko sirloin as well as both Boran sirloin and Boran chuck, a significant difference (p<0.05) was found. These findings align with the research conducted by
Goran et al., (2015) at 23 to 72.7 mg/kg.
Fat soluble Vitamins
Vitamin E
Vitamins are defined as a group of complex organic compounds that are required for normal physiological functions and are found in very small amounts in natural foods. Vitamin E is a fat-soluble vitamin, is essential for the integrity of the reproductive, muscular, circulatory, nervous and immune systems
Cabrera et al., (2010). Table 2 shows a significant difference (p<0.05) in Sheko chuck samples. Previous research found similar vitamin E concentrations in Boran cattle meat
Cabrera et al., (2010). This aligns with findings from Uruguay and Argentina. In another study, extensive farming systems had higher vitamin E levels compared to intensive farming systems
Amani et al., (2015). Additionally, the level of vitamin E is influenced by the exposure to pasture land. In which, meat from animals fed pasture contained higher levels of α-tocopherol than meat from animals fed concentrate without additional vitamin E supplements. This observation has been confirmed both in Uruguay and Argentina
(Bilandžic et al. 2020). In the report
Driskell et al., (2010), beef from extensive systems (EXT2 and EXT3) had the highest vitamin E content, whereas beef from intensive systems (INT1) had the lowest. It has been shown that animals kept on pasture have higher concentrations of vitamin E in their muscles.
Vitamin A
Table 2 shows significant differences (p<0.05) in the cuts of the three cattle breeds
Daley et al., (2010). It was found that pasture-raised Hereford meat had higher β-carotene levels (0.45 g/100 g) compared to concentrate-raised meat (0.06 g/100 g), consistent with previous reports. Retinol levels did not vary with different feeding regimens, as reported by
Vito et al., (2015).
Vitamin D
Table 2 presents the average vitamin D content for Boran, Senga and Sheko cattle. A significant difference (p<0.05) was observed among the different meat samples, consistent with the findings reported by
Cashman et al., (2022). Small amount of vitamin D was might be due to different type of cattle or breed structure and implementation of various cattle developmental programmes could also affect the composition
(Hamadani et al., 2020).
Correlation between mineral concentration and fat soluble vitamin of meat
The analysis showed a positive correlation (r = 0.722) between zinc and iron levels in the meats.
Consistent with Hazell (1982) darker meats like beef and lamb have zinc and iron levels over twice as high as lighter meats like pork and chicken.
A significant correlation (p<0.01) was observed between copper and zinc, as well as between iron and zinc in various cattle types and cuts (Table 3), with correlation coefficients of r = 0.722 and r = 0.742, respectively. Vitamin D and E content also showed a significant correlation (p<0.01), with correlation coefficients of r = 0.804 and r = 0.798, respectively (Table 3). Additionally, there was a significant (p<0.01) correlation between vitamin D and vitamin E, with a coefficient of r = 0.912.
Descriptive principal component analysis
The plot visually represented the association between closely related variables, with the angle between them indicating the strength of their correlation. Fig 3 captured 53.85% of the total variation, with PC1 accounting for 37.44% and PC2 accounting for 16.41% of the variability.
The outcomes of the principal component analysis (PCA) for the nine main components (PC) are summarized in Table 4. The outcomes revealed that the first three principal components account for 66.37% of variability.