Comparative characterization and correlation between lipids and volatile organic compounds in NingXiang and Berkshire-Ningxiang pork

Lipids and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are essential contributors to meat flavor. However, no studies to date have comprehensively explored the lipids and VOCs in raw pork from Ningxiang (NX) pigs and their hybrid breed Berkshire × Ningxiang (BN) pigs. This study aimed to identify the lipids and VOCs and reveal the crucial lipids for characteristic flavor formation. Samples were collected from the longissimus dorsi muscle of six NX and BN 8-month-old pigs each. The intramuscular fat (IMF) content of NX pork was 5.43%, almost twice that of BN pork (p < .01). Total 187 significantly different lipids were identified between NX and BN pork (variable importance in projection scores > 1, p < .05). Further analysis suggested 38 lipids were potential markers. Out of 66 identified VOCs, 16 key VOCs were screened both in NX and BN pork. Furtherly, hexanal-D, 2-methylbutanal, 3-methylbutanal, 1-penten-3-one, 1-octen-3-ol, and ethyl acetate-D were found to be key differential VOCs. Comparing with NX pork, BN pork significantly improved pungent odor. Correlation between the lipid markers and key VOCs demonstrated that phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), phosphatidylserine (PS), phosphatidylinositol (PI), phosphatidylcholine (PC), and triglyceride (TG) were identified as key differentiating compounds for characteristic flavor. Our findings provided a novel understanding of pork identification and a basis for improving the flavor quality of NX and BN pork.