At 24 h post-mortem, steaks were cut from all 160 carcasses at the
12th and 13th ribs of the Longissimus dorsi muscle (LD) for color and
pH measures. Sites in the steaks without fat, bone or connective tissue
were chosen for themeat pH and colormeasures. After 30 min blooming,
color (CIE L*a*b*) wasmeasured as the mean of duplicate readings using
a portable HunterLab MiniScan XE Spectrophotometer (400–700 nm;
D65 light source with 10° viewing angle; Model 4500 L, Hunter Associates
Laboratory, Reston, West Virginia, USA). The pH was measured