Influence factors in dry-cured hams

Zdravstvena ispravnost sirovine, proizvodnja i prerada u odgovarajućim registriranim objektima i veterinarsko-sanitarni nadzor od farme do maloprodaje preduvjeti su bez kojih nema legalne proizvodnje pršuta. Tek uz navedene uvjete zdravstvene ispravnosti može se govoriti o kakvoći proizvoda, odnosno o čimbenicima koji utječu na proizvodnju više ili manje kvalitetnog proizvoda. Proizvodi koji se proizvode s namjerom stavljanja na tržište moraju zadovoljiti propisane veterinarsko-sanitarne uvjete proizvodnje. Spomenuti čimbenici koji u lancu proizvodnje pršuta od farme do stola utječu na konačnu kakvoću pršuta, iako brojni, mogu se u osnovi podijeliti na čimbenike izbora sirovine i čimbenike načina prerade, odnosno preradbene tehnologije. Izbor sirovine, odnosno kakvoća buta prvenstveno ovisi o genotipu, dobi i tjelesnoj masi svinja, ali i o brojnim drugim čimbenicima kao što su tehnologija uzgoja i tova svinja, postupku sa svinjama ante i post mortem, morfološkim osobinama svinja, odnosu mišićnog i masnog tkiva, fizikalno – kemijskim osobinama mesa (pH, WHC, sastav enzimskog sustava itd.) i dr. Definiranje odgovarajućih genotipova svinja pogodnih za proizvodnju pršuta, te tehnologije njihova uzgoja i tova uz uvođenje standarda u tehnološki postupak prerade pršuta, osobito tradicionalnih tipova (dalmatinski i istarski pršut) značajno bi doprinijelo rješavanju problema neujednačenosti kakvoće finalnog proizvoda. Time bi se, uz definiranje osobina finalnog proizvoda i zakonsku zaštitu imena (zaštita izvornosti i zemljopisnog podrijetla temeljem važećih zakonskih propisa) doprinijelo očuvanju i unaprjeđenju visoke kakvoće i tržišne vrijednosti naših tradicionalnih tipova pršuta, te njihova konkurentnost na domaćem i svjetskom tržištu.Ultimate prerequisites of legal dry-cured ham production are food safety standards, production and processing in properly registered buildings as well as veterinarian-sanitary surveillance from stable to table. In such food safety prerequisites product quality could be discussed as well as factors which influence the production of more or less quality products which, regardless of quality must fulfil legal requirements regarding food safety, if they are produced for the market. The above mentioned influence factors in dry-cured ham production chain (from stable to table), despite of being numerous, can be basically divided into raw ham quality factors as well as factors of processing technology. Selection of the raw ham to the dry-cured ham production, respectively raw ham quality, depends in the first place on genotype, age and weight of the hog as well as numerous other factors such as rearing and fattening technology, ante and post mortem treatment, processing technology, morphological characteristics of the hog, muscle and fatty tissue ratio, physico-chemical characteristics of meat (pH, WHC, the muscle enzyme system composition, etc) and so on. Definition of the hog genotypes eligible to dry-cured ham production, as well as rearing and fattening technology and standardization of the processing technology, especially the traditional dry-cured ham production (Dalmatian and Istrian ham) can significantly help solving the problem of variability in dry-cured ham quality. Thus with the definition of the final product characteristics and the legal protection of the product name (geographical indications and designations of origin according to the current legislative) should contribute to protection and improving of the high quality and market value of the traditional Croatian dry-cured ham types as well as to national and world competitiveness