A panel of SNP markers for meat traceability of Halal beef in the Chinese market

Genetic traceability in the whole food supply chain is a reliable method to protect the integrity of Halal beef, but there is no available SNPs panel for the meat traceability of cattle breeds in China. This study aimed at developing a useful SNP panel for Halal beef traceability in the Chinese market. Fifty-nine SNPs markers belonging to 29 autosomes of bovine genome were tested in seven cattle breeds which were the Chinese main breed source of Halal beef. SNPs with minor allele frequencies less than 30% were excluded and a thirty-six highly informative SNPs panel had been selected. With the SNPs panel, the probability that one individual is incorrectly assigned ranges from 1.12 out of 10 (×15) to 3.38 out of 10 (×12), depending on the breed. In addition, twelve most polymorphic SNPs markers in the pooled animals were successfully used for meat traceability of Halal beef by meat-blood pairs. The selected thirty-six SNPs of panel could be employed to further guarantee the safety of Halal beef in the Chinese market.