Is there a potential international market for Danish welfare pork? - A consumer survey from Denmark, Sweden, and Germany.

This cross-country study investigates the potential to improve pig welfare by exploiting consumer demand, domestically and in export markets, for welfare pork produced in indoor production systems. The analysis is based on questionnaire data collected in 2019 focusing on demand for Danish welfare pork both in Denmark and in two nearby export markets, Sweden and Germany. To reduce hypothetical bias, a willingness-to-pay indicator is combined with an indicator of positive interest in buying a fictive Danish welfare labelled pork. We find that the market potential is relatively weak. Our findings indicate that there is some, albeit limited, potential in Denmark and Germany while demand is practically non-existing in Sweden, probably because the pig welfare guaranteed by Swedish legislation is similar to what is provided by the fictive welfare label employed in the study. Hence, consumer demand alone cannot secure enhanced pig welfare. Moreover, we found national differences in the characteristics of consumers who are interested in Danish welfare pork.

Effect of Morus alba leaf extract dose on lipid oxidation, microbiological stability, and sensory evaluation of functional liver pâtés during refrigerated storage.

Mulberry (Morus alba L.), and above all the extract from the leaves of this plant, is a natural medicine that has been used in traditional medicine for hundreds of years. Mulberry leaves contains polyphenol compounds: flavonoids, coumarins, numerous phenolic acids, as well as terpenes and steroids. The antioxidant effect of these compounds may be beneficial to the fat fraction of meat products, thereby increasing their functional qualities. The aim of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the use of mulberry water leaf extract, as an additive limiting adverse fat changes and affecting the functionality in model liver pâtés. Pork pâtés were prepared by replacing 20% of animal fat with rapeseed oil (RO), and water extract of mulberry leaves was added in the proportion of 0.2%, 0.6% and 1.0%. It has been shown that the addition of mulberry leaf extract delayed the appearance of primary and secondary fat oxidation products. The most effective antioxidant effect during 15-day storage was observed in the sample with the addition of 0.6% and 1.0% water mulberry leaf extract. These samples also showed inhibiting activity against angiotensin-converting enzymes and cholinesterase's. During storage, the tested pâtés had a high sensory quality with unchanged microbiological quality. Mulberry leaf extract can be an interesting addition to the production of fat meat products, delaying adverse changes in the lipid fraction and increasing the functionality of products.

Non-destructive Near Infrared Spectroscopy for the labelling of frozen Iberian pork loins.

Iberian pigs fed on acorns and pasture were slaughtered from January until March of 2018 and 2019. The meat from those Iberian pigs is a seasonal food that only can be found fresh, at the marketplace, during a limit period of the year. Selling frozen-thawed meat is a legal practice, but consumers must be informed about it on the product label. However, to declare as fresh meat, meat previously frozen, is one of the most frequent meat frauds. The present study compares the performance of two rather different Near Infrared Spectroscopy instruments, based on Fourier Transform and Linear Variable Filter technologies, for the in-situ detection of fresh and frozen-thawed acorns-fed Iberian pig loins using Partial Least Discriminant Analysis (PLS-DA). The performance of the models developed for both instruments offered a very high discriminant ability. Furthermore, the models showed consistent results and interpretation when were evaluated with several scalars and graphical methods.

Understanding consumers' perceptions towards Iberian pig production and animal welfare.

The Spanish market offers a greater variety of Iberian pork products. The aim of this paper is to determine the perception of consumers of several aspects of Iberian pig production and animal welfare depending on the consumers' characteristics. Consumers from two Spanish regions (n = 403) answered a questionnaire about their beliefs and the importance of pig production, their purchase intentions and their willingness to pay. Consumers were segmented according to their level of knowledge about Iberian pig production. The results of this work indicate that consumers have poor knowledge about Iberian pig production. Even so, consumers show a remarkable preference for Iberian products, especially when the animals are reared freely and in natural conditions, giving great importance to animal welfare. Consumer preferences indicate the importance of emphasizing Iberian traditional pig product characteristics on the label to promote their purchase choices.

Relationships between EUROP carcass grading and backfat fatty acid composition in Italian Large White heavy pigs.

The amount and quality of covering adipose tissue affect the suitability of hind legs for the production of high-quality seasoned hams. To date, no studies exist on the correlation between EUROP carcass classification and backfat fatty acid (FA) composition in heavy pigs used for dry-cured hams. A sample of 898 Italian Large White heavy pigs was used to verify the relationship between carcass classification based on lean meat percentage and backfat FA composition. A Canonical Discriminant Analysis (CDA) was used to verify the power of individual FA and FA categories in discriminating among EUROP classes. The results proved that saturated FAs (i.e. palmitic, stearic and arachidic acids) and the n-6 polyunsaturated FAs have the highest discriminating power, thus permitting to differentiate among E, U, R, O carcass classes. For the first time, this work demonstrates the relationship between EUROP pig carcass grading, which is only based on an estimate of the percentage of lean meat, and backfat FA composition.

Elemental composition of pork meat from conventional and animal welfare farms by inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) and ICP-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and their authentication via multivariate chemometric analysis.

The demand of consumers from around the world for natural, nutritional and palatable pork meat is increasing with time. This study analyzed macro (Ca, K, Mg, Na, P), micro (Fe, Zn, Cr, Mn, Ni, Cu, Se, Sr, Cs), trace (Li, Be, V, Co, Ga, Ba, U), and toxic trace (As, Cd, TI, and Pb) elements of pork meat from conventional and animal welfare farms in South Korea. Among the elements analyzed by inductively coupled plasma-optical emission, and mass spectrometric (ICP-OES, ICP-MS) techniques, K, Fe, Mn, and Ni content were higher in animal welfare pork meat. The trace and toxic trace elements content were lower than the standard values. The principal component and linear discriminant analyses (PCA, LDA) explained the highest variance (99.82%, 99.00%) of the group based on toxic elements. These findings can thus be used to evaluate animal welfare and conventional farms pork meat quality in South Korea as well as worldwide.

Temporal dominance of sensations and check-all-that-apply analysis of restructured cooked hams elaborated with different salt content and pork quality meats.

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of salt (NaCl) content of 1.2%, 1.6%, and 2.0% in the sensory characteristics of restructured cooked hams, formulated with abnormal (PSE; pale, soft, and exudative) and normal (RFN; reddish pink, firm, and non-exudative) meats. The products with 1.2% added salt had higher (P < 0.05) acceptance scores for flavor, regardless of the type of meat used. Hams manufactured with PSE meat and 1.2% salt content had higher (P < 0.05) overall impression scores and were associated with the terms "characteristic ham flavor", "juicy", and "soft" in the check-all-that-apply analysis. RFN meat samples with 1.6% and 2.0% salt content were respectively associated to "rubbery" and "firm" texture. The ham flavor was always reported at the beginning of the temporal dominance of sensation test, followed by the term "salty" for the samples with 2.0% salt and "meaty" in the samples with 1.2% salt. The term "umami taste" appears to be associated to that samples made with PSE meat. These results led to the conclusion that PSE meat had a positive effect on the sensory profile of restructured cooked hams, especially in those formulated with 1.2% salt.

Genome-wide analysis of expression QTL (eQTL) and allele-specific expression (ASE) in pig muscle identifies candidate genes for meat quality traits.

BACKGROUND: Genetic analysis of gene expression level is a promising approach for characterizing candidate genes that are involved in complex economic traits such as meat quality. In the present study, we conducted expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) and allele-specific expression (ASE) analyses based on RNA-sequencing (RNAseq) data from the longissimus muscle of 189 Duroc × Luchuan crossed pigs in order to identify some candidate genes for meat quality traits. RESULTS: Using a genome-wide association study based on a mixed linear model, we identified 7192 cis-eQTL corresponding to 2098 cis-genes (p ≤ 1.33e-3, FDR ≤ 0.05) and 6400 trans-eQTL corresponding to 863 trans-genes (p ≤ 1.13e-6, FDR ≤ 0.05). ASE analysis using RNAseq SNPs identified 9815 significant ASE-SNPs in 2253 unique genes. Integrative analysis between the cis-eQTL and ASE target genes identified 540 common genes, including 33 genes with expression levels that were correlated with at least one meat quality trait. Among these 540 common genes, 63 have been reported previously as candidate genes for meat quality traits, such as PHKG1 (q-value = 1.67e-6 for the leading SNP in the cis-eQTL analysis), NUDT7 (q-value = 5.67e-13), FADS2 (q-value = 8.44e-5), and DGAT2 (q-value = 1.24e-3). CONCLUSIONS: The present study confirmed several previously published candidate genes and identified some novel candidate genes for meat quality traits via eQTL and ASE analyses, which will be useful to prioritize candidate genes in further studies.

Selection for feed efficiency using the social effects animal model in growing Duroc pigs: evaluation by simulation.

BACKGROUND: Traits recorded on animals that are raised in groups can be analysed with the social effects animal model (SAM). For multiple traits, this model specifies the genetic correlation structure more completely than the animal model (AM). Our hypothesis was that by using the SAM for genetic evaluation of average daily gain (ADG) and backfat thickness (BF), a high rate of improvement in feed conversion ratio (FCR) might be achieved, since unfavourable genetic correlations between ADG and BF reported in a Duroc pig line could be partially avoided. We estimated genetic and non-genetic correlations between BF, ADG and FCR on 1144 pigs using Bayesian methods considering the SAM; and responses to selection indexes that combine estimates of indirect (IGE) and direct (DGE) genetic effects for ADG and BF by stochastic simulation. RESULTS: Estimates of the ratio of the variance of DGE to the phenotypic variance were 0.31, 0.39 and 0.25 and those of the total genetic variance to the phenotypic variance were 0.63, 0.74 and 0.93 for ADG, BF and FCR, respectively. In spite of this, when the SAM was used to generate data and for the genetic evaluations, the average economic response was worse than that obtained when BV predictions from the AM were considered. The achieved economic response was due to a direct reduction in BF and not to an improvement in FCR. CONCLUSIONS: Our results show that although social genetic effects play an important role in the traits studied, their proper consideration in pig breeding programs to improve FCR indirectly is still difficult. The correlations between IGE and DGE that could help to overcome the unfavourable genetic correlations between DGE did not reach sufficiently high magnitudes; also, the genetic parameters estimates from the SAM have large errors. These two factors penalize the average response under the SAM compared to the AM.

Exploring the lncRNAs Related to Skeletal Muscle Fiber Types and Meat Quality Traits in Pigs.

The alteration in skeletal muscle fiber is a critical factor affecting livestock meat quality traits and human metabolic diseases. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are a diverse class of non-coding RNAs with a length of more than 200 nucleotides. However, the mechanisms underlying the regulation of lncRNAs in skeletal muscle fibers remain elusive. To understand the genetic basis of lncRNA-regulated skeletal muscle fiber development, we performed a transcriptome analysis to identify the key lncRNAs affecting skeletal muscle fiber and meat quality traits on a pig model. We generated the lncRNA expression profiles of fast-twitch Biceps femoris (Bf) and slow-twitch Soleus (Sol) muscles and identified the differentially expressed (DE) lncRNAs using RNA-seq and performed bioinformatics analyses. This allowed us to identify 4581 lncRNA genes among six RNA libraries and 92 DE lncRNAs between Bf and Sol which are the key candidates for the conversion of skeletal muscle fiber types. Moreover, we detected the expression patterns of lncRNA MSTRG.42019 in different tissues and skeletal muscles of various development stages. In addition, we performed a correlation analyses between the expression of DE lncRNA MSTRG.42019 and meat quality traits. Notably, we found that DE lncRNA MSTRG.42019 was highly expressed in skeletal muscle and its expression was significantly higher in Sol than in Bf, with a positive correlation with the expression of Myosin heavy chain 7 (MYH7) (r = 0.6597, p = 0.0016) and a negative correlation with meat quality traits glycolytic potential (r = -0.5447, p = 0.0130), as well as drip loss (r = -0.5085, p = 0.0221). Moreover, we constructed the lncRNA MSTRG.42019-mRNAs regulatory network for a better understanding of a possible mechanism regulating skeletal muscle fiber formation. Our data provide the groundwork for studying the lncRNA regulatory mechanisms of skeletal muscle fiber conversion, and given the importance of skeletal muscle fiber types in muscle-related diseases, our data may provide insight into the treatment of muscular diseases in humans.

Modeling host-microbiome interactions for the prediction of meat quality and carcass composition traits in swine.

BACKGROUND: The objectives of this study were to evaluate genomic and microbial predictions of phenotypes for meat quality and carcass traits in swine, and to evaluate the contribution of host-microbiome interactions to the prediction. Data were collected from Duroc-sired three-way crossbred individuals (n = 1123) that were genotyped with a 60 k SNP chip. Phenotypic information and fecal 16S rRNA microbial sequences at three stages of growth (Wean, Mid-test, and Off-test) were available for all these individuals. We used fourfold cross-validation with animals grouped based on sire relatedness. Five models with three sets of predictors (full, informatively reduced, and randomly reduced) were evaluated. 'Full' included information from all genetic markers and all operational taxonomic units (OTU), while 'informatively reduced' and 'randomly reduced' represented a reduced number of markers and OTU based on significance preselection and random sampling, respectively. The baseline model included the fixed effects of dam line, sex and contemporary group and the random effect of pen. The other four models were constructed by including only genomic information, only microbiome information, both genomic and microbiome information, and microbiome and genomic information and their interaction. RESULTS: Inclusion of microbiome information increased predictive ability of phenotype for most traits, in particular when microbiome information collected at a later growth stage was used. Inclusion of microbiome information resulted in higher accuracies and lower mean squared errors for fat-related traits (fat depth, belly weight, intramuscular fat and subjective marbling), objective color measures (Minolta a*, Minolta b* and Minolta L*) and carcass daily gain. Informative selection of markers increased predictive ability but decreasing the number of informatively reduced OTU did not improve model performance. The proportion of variation explained by the host-genome-by-microbiome interaction was highest for fat depth (~ 20% at Mid-test and Off-test) and shearing force (~ 20% consistently at Wean, Mid-test and Off-test), although the inclusion of the interaction term did not increase the accuracy of predictions significantly. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides novel insight on the use of microbiome information for the phenotypic prediction of meat quality and carcass traits in swine. Inclusion of microbiome information in the model improved predictive ability of phenotypes for fat deposition and color traits whereas including a genome-by-microbiome term did not improve prediction accuracy significantly.

The Impact of the Food Labeling and Other Factors on Consumer Preferences Using Discrete Choice Modeling-The Example of Traditional Pork Sausage.

In our study, we examined whether product characteristics indicated by food labels matter in purchasing decisions for sausage made from traditional Hungarian mangalica pork; and how much consumers are willing to pay for them. On the other hand, we also tried to measure whether any changes in consumers' preferences occurred in recent years. Two product characteristics (label of origin and different mangalica meat content) and two other factors (place of purchase and price) are examined in a discrete choice experiment based on stated preference data. According to our expectations, government-funded consumer campaigns in recent years have had an impact on consumers purchase of this traditional product, and they pay more attention to food labels, which can also be influenced by sociodemographic characteristics. Our results have been compared to a previous choice-model based research, investigating consumers' attitude towards similar mangalica pork products. Three different types of models (multinomial logit, random parameter logit, and latent class) are employed, from which two types of models account for the heterogeneity in preferences. Based on the results, it can be concluded that the advertisements promoting traditional meat consumption had only a partial effect on consumer attitudes. Consumers clearly prefer the label of origin indicating meat from registered animals and purchasing on the farmers' market, but according to the indication of the different mangalica meat content in the product, we have already reached conflicting results. Three consumer segments were identified: "price sensitive, loyal to label, label neutral" based on latent class model estimates.

Enhancement of a zwitterionic chitosan derivative on mechanical properties and antibacterial activity of carboxymethyl cellulose-based films.

A type of zwitterionic chitosan derivative, N-2-hydroxylpropyl-3-trimethylammonium-O-carboxymethyl chitosan (HTCMCh), was synthesized and introduced into carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC)-based films as a film strength enhancer and antibacterial agent. The influencing factors include degree of substitution (DS) and mHTCMCh/mCMC. Their influences on mechanical properties, thermal stability, antibacterial activities, microstructures, transmittance, and wettability of the CMC-based films were studied. It was found that HTCMCh improves the tensile strength (by 9.0-130.9%), Young's modulus (47.8-351.6%), and elongation at break (90.8-280.8%) of CMC/HTCMCh films simultaneously, depending on the DS and mass content of HTCMCh. However, the HTCMCh shows little influence on microstructure and thermal stability of CMC/HTCMCh films. Satisfactorily, CMC/HTCMCh films show strong antibacterial activities against E. coli and S. aureus and are nontoxic to fibroblast HFF-1 cells. Pork packaging experiments demonstrated that CMC/HTCMCh10%,0,58 film could significantly inhibit bacterial growth, indicating that the HTCMCh-doped CMC films could be used as food packaging materials.

Application of Natural Pigments in Ordinary Cooked Ham.

The possibility of obtaining a carmine or pink color on ordinary cooked ham by applying natural dyes from three plant species, namely red radish (Raphanus sativus L.), hibiscus (Roselle sabdariffa L.) and red beetroot (Beta vulgaris L.), was investigated. The extracts were evaluated for the stability at physical-chemical parameters and subjected to cytotoxicity assays in the gastric cell line AGS Encapsulation of the extracts in soybean lecithin liposomes and maltodextrin microcapsules was performed. Lyophilized extracts before and after encapsulation in maltodextrin were applied in the formulation of ordinary cooked ham and used in a pilot scale of production. The color of cooked ham samples from different assays was evaluated visually and by colorimetry. The results suggest that the coloration of ordinary cooked ham obtained with extracts of red beetroot is very promising for future applications in this type of meat product.

The effect of immunization against gonadotropin-releasing factor in market gilts: Meta-analyses of parameters relevant for pig producers, pork packers and retailers/consumers.

The vaccine against gonadotropin releasing factor (GnRF), Improvac®, has recently emerged as an option for rearing market gilts up to heavier harvest weights. Improvac's® temporary suppression of the ovarian function and gonadal hormones results in greater feed intake and better welfare from avoidance of sexual behavioral problems. Based on 22 published articles, our meta-analysis has quantified the effect of immunizing gilts against GnRF on parameters relevant for pig producers, pork packers and retailers/consumers. The meta-analyses included growth performance and final harvest parameters, general carcass traits and yield of valuable meat, meat and fat quality parameters. Primary analyses considered studies without ractopamine, subgroup and additional analyses assessed the impact of co-variates. From the perspective of pig producers, primary analyses showed that immunized (IM) gilts have significantly (P < 0.001) increased average daily gain (+45.1 g/day) and daily feed intake (+0.19 kg/day), higher final live weight (+4.0 kg) and more backfat (+2.8 mm). From the perspective of the pork packers, IM gilts have heavier carcasses (+3.2 kg; P < 0.001), whereas dressing percentage is similar. IM gilts are less lean (-1.5% units; P < 0.001) and have 0.21% units more intramuscular fat (P = 0.001). The yield of ham, shoulder, and loin is similar, whereas the yield of belly is significantly higher (+0.28 kg; P < 0.001). There are no differences in meat quality parameters (color, pH24, and drip loss) between IM gilts and untreated gilts, whereas a lower iodine value in IM gilts indicates an improved fat quality. Further subgroup and additional analyses confirmed the validity of our meta-analysis.

Effect of pork quality and salt replacer KCl on technological and sensorial characteristics of restructured cooked hams.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of replacing sodium chloride (NaCl) by 40% of potassium chloride (KCl), combined to the use of different proportions (0, 50, and 100%) of pale, soft, and exudative meat, on the technological and sensorial characteristics of restructured cooked hams. NaCl replacement and pale, soft, and exudative proportion did not change (P > 0.05) the products' chemical composition, water losses, pH, and color. The ham texture profile was not affected by pale, soft, and exudative meat, but the chewiness reduced (P < 0.05) with NaCl replacement. Pale, soft, and exudative meat reduced (P < 0.05) the ham sliceability from 94 to 88%, regardless of the proportion used. NaCl replacement did not affect the perceived saltiness and the products' acceptability, but pale, soft, and exudative products were more accepted, and consumers noticed a higher salty taste. It was concluded that reducing the sodium content by partially replacing NaCl with KCl is feasible even in restructured cooked hams made with high proportions of pale, soft, and exudative meat.

Authentication of organic pork and identification of geographical origins of pork in four regions of China by combined analysis of stable isotopes and multi-elements.

The purpose of this study was to verify that the organic status of pork purchased in the markets from four different regions of China can be authenticated by the combined analysis of stable isotopes and multiple elements. Four stable isotope ratios (δ13C, δ15N, δ2H and δ18O) and the concentrations of seven elements (K, Na, Mg, Ca, Fe, Cu and Se) were determined in organic and conventional pork samples from four locations of China. Principal component analysis (PCA) and orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) were used to analyze stable isotope ratios and multi-element concentrations in pork. Based on the limited database of analytical values, the methodology would be potentially able to confirm whether a sample of pork came from the region and organic status it claimed. These results provide a possibility for authenticity of organic agricultural products from a large scope such as a province even a country.

Distillation remnants of shochu, a traditional Japanese liquor, improve pork meat quality by reducing stress.

Distillation remnants of Shochu, a traditional Japanese liquorare fed to livestock, but their effects on livestock health have not been investigated. Here, we investigated the effects of these remnants on pig stress and pork quality (N = 6/group). The remnants reduced plasma cortisol (17.94 ± 0.92 [control] and 10.59 ± 1.28 [sample]) and increased salivary IgA (6.06 ± 2.21 [control] and 21.60 ± 5.37 [sample]). Blind sensory assessments showed that, in remnant-fed pork, sirloin tenderness (3.18 ± 0.19 [control] and 4.27 ± 0.38 [sample]) and the juiciness, umami, and fat tastiness of fillets were improved. Oleic acid percentages were higher (35.23 ± 0.65 [control] and 37.87 ± 0.60 [sample]) in remnant-fed pork, contributing to a favorable sensory evaluation. Two-group comparisons were analyzed by student's t test. p < 0.05. This study promotes the reutilization of remnants to reduce livestock stress and improve meat quality.

Effect of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus infection and soy isoflavone supplementation on carcass cutability and meat quality of pigs.

The objective was to evaluate the effects of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) infection and dietary soy isoflavone (ISF) supplementation on carcass cutability and meat quality of commercial pigs. Barrows (21 d of age) were randomly allotted to experimental treatments that were maintained throughout the study: noninfected pigs received an ISF-devoid control diet (CON, n = 22) and infected pigs received either the control diet (PRRSV-CON, n = 20) or that supplemented with total ISF in excess of 1,500 mg/kg (PRRSV-ISF, n = 25). Pigs were penned by treatment, with six pigs within a pen. Following a 7-d adaptation, weanling pigs were inoculated once intranasally with either a sham-control (phosphate buffered saline [PBS]) or live PRRSV (1 × 105 tissue culture infective dose [TCID]50/mL, strain NADC20). Pigs were maintained on experimental diets for 166 d after inoculation and then slaughtered (192 or 194 d of age; approximately 120 kg body weight [BW]). At 1-d postmortem, left sides were separated between the 10th and 11th rib for the determination of loin eye area (LEA), backfat (BF) thickness, and loin quality (ultimate pH, instrumental color, drip loss, visual color, marbling, and firmness). Loin chops were aged 14 d postmortem prior to Warner-Bratzler shear force (WBSF) determination. Belly width, length, thickness, and flop distance were determined. Data were analyzed as a one-way ANOVA with pig as the experimental unit. Carcass yield, LEA, BF, and estimated lean percentage did not differ (P > 0.26) among treatments. Loins from CON pigs had increased ultimate pH (P = 0.01), reduced L* scores (P = 0.005) coupled with darker visual color scores (P = 0.004), were firmer (P < 0.0001), and exhibited reduced drip loss (P = 0.01) compared with PRRSV-CON and PRRSV-ISF pigs. However, WBSF did not differ (P = 0.51) among treatments after 14 d of aging. Bellies from CON pigs were more firm compared with bellies from PRRSV-CON and ISF pigs (P < 0.01). These data suggest PRRSV infection did not alter carcass characteristics but may have marginally reduced loin and belly quality. Supplementation with dietary soy isoflavones did nothing to mitigate the detrimental effects of PRRSV infection.

Prediction of dry-cured ham weight loss and prospects of use in a pig breeding program.

Large ham weight losses (WL) in dry-curing are undesired as they lead to a loss of marketable product and penalise the quality of the dry-cured ham. The availability of early predictions of WL may ease the adaptation of the dry-curing process to the characteristics of the thighs and increase the effectiveness of selective breeding in enhancing WL. Aims of this study were (i) to develop Bayesian and Random Forests (RFs) regression models for the prediction of ham WL during dry-curing using on-site infrared spectra of raw ham subcutaneous fat, carcass and raw ham traits as predictors and (ii) to estimate genetic parameters for WL and their predictions (P-WL). Visible-near infrared spectra were collected on the transversal section of the subcutaneous fat of raw hams. Carcass traits were carcass weight, carcass backfat depth, lean meat content and weight of raw hams. Raw ham traits included measures of ham subcutaneous fat depth and linear scores for round shape, subcutaneous fat thickness and marbling of the visible muscles of the thigh. Measures of WL were available for 1672 hams. The best prediction accuracies were those of a Bayesian regression model including the average spectrum, carcass and raw ham traits, with R2 values in validation of 0.46, 0.55 and 0.62, for WL at end of salting (23 days), resting (90 days) and curing (12 months), respectively. When WL at salting was used as an additional predictor of total WL, the R2 in validation was 0.67. Bayesian regressions were more accurate than RFs models in predicting all the investigated traits. Restricted maximum likelihood (REML) estimates of genetic parameters for WL and P-WL at the end of curing were estimated through a bivariate animal model including 1672 measures of WL and 8819 P-WL records. Results evidenced that the traits are heritable (h2 ± SE was 0.27 ± 0.04 for WL and 0.39 ± 0.04 for P-WL), and the additive genetic correlation is positive and high (ra = 0.88 ± 0.03). Prediction accuracy of ham WL is high enough to envisage a future use of prediction models in identifying batches of hams requiring an adaptation of the processing conditions to optimise results of the manufacturing process. The positive and high genetic correlation detected between WL and P-WL at the end of dry-curing, as well as the estimated heritability for P-WL, suggests that P-WL can be successfully used as an indicator trait of the measured WL in pig breeding programs.