| dc.description.abstract | Chicken meat is relatively low priced, widely accepted and less rejected based on traditions, life standards and religious beliefs unlike other livestock. There have been attempts to study chicken sensory characteristics from the consumers perceptive but studies have rarely provided sufficient information on consumer preference for specific aspects of broiler chicken meat sensory
characteristics. The study aimed at assessing consumer preference for different sensory characteristics on broiler chicken meat in Kampala city. The objectives of the study were; i)to characterize broiler chicken meat consumers in Kampala city; ii) to determine consumer’s preferences for specific aspects of broiler chicken meat sensory characteristics during buying decision; iii)to determine factors influencing consumers’ decision to buy and frequency of buying broiler chicken meat. The study was conducted in five divisions of Kampala city and data were collected from 100broiler chicken consumers who were randomly selected from 76
parishes.The data were analyzed using both descriptive statistics and econometric techniques. Descriptive statistics revealed that only 8%preferred white meat, 2% preferred brown meat, and 8% preferred yellow meat. Majority of the consumers(82%)did not consider color as an important factor when buying broiler chicken meat. In terms of tenderness, softer tenderness texture was highly preferred accounting for 63%while only a few consumers (7%) did not have a specific preference for tenderness attributes.The econometric findings indicated that tenderness had a positive and statistically significant impact on consumer decisions to purchase broiler chicken meat, among other sensory characteristics. Meanwhile, income was the most
influential among the social-demographic factor that influenced consumers’ decision to buy broiler chicken meat. Based on the findings of the study, it is recommended that research institutions should incorporate attributes of interest to onsumers, specifically softer tenderness texture in their breeding programs so as to enhance consumer acceptability and utilization of broiler chicken meat. Furthermore, breeding traits that lead to price discounts, such as a high fibrous texture, should be discouraged. This would prevent farmers from experiencing reduced utility when raising broiler chickens with such attributes. Conclusively, good production
practices and proper marketing strategies are among recommendations to poultry industry players toward fulfilling consumer demand for good broiler chicken meat with more emphasis put on improving broiler chicken meat tenderness. | en_US |
