Growth performance, carcass and meat quality of the Celta pig crossbred with Duroc and Landrance genotypes

•Crosses with Landrace and Duroc grew faster than Celta pure breed pigs.•Duroc cross had better carcass quality than the Celta pure line breed.•Crossbred pigs had lower intramuscular fat and hardness than Celta pure line ones.

The Celta pig is a native breed adapted to the north of Spain and extensive production system. The objective was to study the effects of sex and crossbreeding on carcass characteristics and meat quality. Samples were taken from longissimus dorsi muscle of 52 pigs of three different groups [Celta pure breed (C), Celta crossed with Landrace (C × L) and Celta crossed with Duroc (C × D)].Non-significant effects of sex on growth were found for all animals in the trial. Cross with Landrace and Duroc grew faster than Celta pure breed and reached the target carcass weight of 150 kg in the least time (113 and 68 days before, respectively). Concerning carcass characteristics, Duroc cross had better carcass quality (higher killing out percentage, carcass compactness index loin and ham percentage and less fat) than the Celta pure line. Regarding meat quality, crossbreeds had less intramuscular fat, lower shear force and hardness than Celta pure line. With regard to fatty acid profile, there was a predominance of MUFA, followed by SFA and PUFA in all animals. Crossbreeding affected the proportion of oleic acid, having the highest percentages (46.75%) in Duroc cross.