Comparison of fatty acid composition in grass-fed and grain-fed horse meat Aidyn Igenbayev, Shyngys Amirkhanov, Muhtarbek Kakimov, Alida Kanabekova S. Seifullin Kazakh Agrotechnical University, Astana, Kazakhstan Reference: Igenbayev, A., Amirkhanov, S., Ospankulova, G., Kardenov, S., Baytukenova, S., & Ali Shariati, M. (2022). Determination of the fatty acid composition and fatty acids trans-isomers in the horse, stall horse, mutton, beef and pork meat. Potravinarstvo Slovak Journal of Food Sciences, 16, 800–809. https://doi.org/10.5219/1799 The objective of this research was to analyze the fatty acid composition of horse meat. The study involved the selection of two distinct groups of horses: 1) horses that were raised and fed in a pasture; 2) horses that were kept in stalls. For the analysis, pasture horse meat (Kazakh horse breed), and stall horse meat (Kazakh horse breed) were purchased from meat markets and supermarkets in Astana, Kazakhstan. Samples were obtained from four diﬀerent carcass muscles (back muscles, thigh muscles, rib muscles, neck muscles) of each animal, an average of 500 grams of sample. The samples obtained were stored at a temperature of - 18 ºC. Horse meat for pasture and stall keeping was supplied from farms engaged in horse breeding in an appropriate way of feeding. This analysis compares the fatty acid composition of grass-fed and grain-fed horse meat, speciﬁcally in the loin cut. The data shows that grain-fed horse meat has a higher percentage of saturated fatty acids (SFA) compared to grass-fed horse meat, with the content being 40.32% and 37.43% respectively. Conversely, grass-fed horse meat has a higher percentage of monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) compared to grain-fed horse meat, with the content being 48.12% and 40.36% r e s p e c t i v e l y. T h e p e r c e n t a g e o f polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) is also higher in grain-fed horse meat compared to grass-fed horse meat, with the content being 19.31% and 14.44% respectively. Table 1. Fatty acid content in muscle lipid fraction of grass fed horse meat, % of total fatty acids Table 2. The fatty acid content in the muscle lipid fraction of grain-fed horse meat, % of total fatty acids This study reports the levels of trans fatty acids (TFAs) in diﬀerent cuts of grass-fed horsemeat, revealing that the TFA content varies across cuts with the highest level in loin (1.85%) and the lowest in round (1.66%). The levels of TFAs in rib (1.68%) and neck (1.70%) are similar to each other and fall in between the levels observed in loin and round. This study presents data on the levels of trans fatty acids (TFAs) in various cuts of grain-fed horsemeat, revealing that the TFA content is markedly higher in round (5.54%) and neck (5.52%) than in loin (2.75%) and rib (3.56%). These ﬁndings suggest that the TFA content in horsemeat can be inﬂuenced by the type of feed given to the animals. As high intake of TFAs has been linked to increased risk of cardiovascular disease, these results provide important information for assessing the potential health risks associated with the consumption of grain-fed horsemeat. This comparison suggests that the type of diet fed to horses can have a signiﬁcant impact on the fatty acid composition of their meat. The higher content of SFAs in grain-fed horse meat may increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, while the higher content of MUFAs in grass-fed horse meat may have potential health beneﬁts. The higher content of PUFAs in grain-fed horse meat may also be beneﬁcial, as PUFAs are essential fatty acids that have been linked to a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease. However, the speciﬁc types of PUFAs present in grain-fed horse meat should be taken into consideration, as some types of PUFAs may be more beneﬁcial than others. Further studies are needed to explore the health implications of consuming grass-fed vs. grain- This research is funded by the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Kazakhstan (BR1076499