Determination of Body Fat and Moisture in Dwarf Hens with Near-Infrared Reflectance Spectroscopy

Abstract The accuracy of near-infrared (NIR) reflectance (R) spectroscopy for predicting whole-carcass percent fat and moisture in mature dwarf hens was established. Fat and moisture contents of ground samples from 99 hens were determined by standard fat extraction and oven-drying procedures. Homogenized samples from the same birds were also scanned in a NIR spectrophotometer (1.445 to 2.310 μm), and the log 1/R was recorded. Calibration equations were generated with 49 randomly selected samples, and the coefficients of determination between chemical values for fat and moisture and reflectance readings were .92 and .94, respectively. The caliration equations were then used to predict fat and moisture values in the remaining 50 samples. Coefficients of determination between the predicted fat and moisture values and actual chemical values were .96 and .95, respectively. Near-infrared reflectance spectroscopy was found to be a rapid and effective method for determining percent body fat and moisture.