Browsing by Author "Vázquez-Armijo JF"

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    PERSPECTIVES OF MEXICAN CONSUMER ON BEEF QUALITY
    (Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán, 2021-09-01) Parra-Bracamonte GM; Lopez-Villalobos N; Vázquez-Armijo JF; Magaña-Monforte JG; Martinez-González JC; Moreno-Medina VR
    Background. Eighty percent of beef produced in Mexico is consumed domestically. However, in recent years per capita domestic consumption has gradually decreased. Identifying consumer preferences and their perspectives on beef quality could provide information for the design of programs focused on the improvement of beef production chain and encourage meat consumption. Objective. In this study the definition of quality is provided and discussed and the published evidence on the main attributes considered by the Mexican consumer at the time of beef purchase are revised, providing a critical perspective on beef quality appreciation and to identify some implications and limitations. Methodology. Was performed a bibliographic search of available literature including the Mexican consumer perspective on beef quality attributes published in peer reviewed papers from international and national indexed journals. Main findings. Evidences on the main criterions that Mexican consumer considers as indicators for beef quality during de beef purchase are presented, and some implications and perspectives for the future adoption of more complex systems to guarantee beef quality and add value to the entire production chain are discussed. Implications. This study provide some directions on the establishment of proposals to adequately define the Mexican beef consumer preferences focused on quality and consistency of product, favorable for the whole beef industry. Conclusions: The price of beef was identified as the main criterion considered for Mexican consumer for purchasing of beef, and secondarily, his perspective include intrinsic attributes generically describing the beef quality. More studies are necessary for the identification of factors affecting the beef consistency and to adequately define the most important attributes that satisfy the Mexican consumer perspective on beef quality.
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    Sexual performance and semen quality of pubertal lambs treated with different weaning methods
    (Copernicus Publications, 2022-07-20) Ledezma-Torres RA; Sánchez-Dávila F; Rodríguez-Miranda DA; Luna-Palomera C; Grizelj J; Vázquez-Armijo JF; Lopez-Villalobos N
    The objective of this study was to determine the effect of the weaning method on lamb stress, body weight, sexual behavior, and semen quality of Saint Croix male lambs. The present study was carried out during the late spring and summer of 2018 in the northeast of Mexico. Sixty male lambs born as twins or triplets (3.2  ±  0.6 kg birth weight) and weaned at 60 d of age (19.21  ±  1.8 kg weaning weight) were divided into two weaning methods: complete separation from the dams (CS; the lambs were moved to a pen that was at 500 m of distance from the dams) and separation with contact from the dams (SCD); the lambs were physically separated by a steel mesh that prevented the lambs from having the possibility of sucking milk from their mothers, but they maintained permanent visual and auditory contact. Cortisol levels were determined 3 d before and 7 d after weaning. Lambs were evaluated as 3-month-old lambs for sexual behavior and semen quality for 9 weeks. The effects of the weaning method (M), week (W), and the interaction M  ×  W were significant on body weight and cortisol levels ( P < 0.001 ). The SCD lambs had higher cortisol levels at 3, 5, and 7 d after weaning than CS lambs ( P < 0.001 ). The CS lambs had higher body weight during the first 4 weeks after weaning than SCD lambs ( P < 0.001 ). The weaning method had no effect on scrotal circumference, sexual behavior, and semen quality traits, except for progressive sperm motility, being better for the lambs that were completely separated ( P < 0.05 ). The results from this study show that complete separation of lambs and ewes at weaning is an effective method to reduce lamb stress and improve lamb growth after weaning, but it did not have long-term effects on sexual behavior and semen quality of Saint Croix male lambs.