Islamic study defined Halal meat as a “thoyyiban” (clean) food source. Halal meat is produced by following slaughtering procedure as determined by the Islamic jurisprudence. Slaughtering methods have gained a worldwide discussion as animal welfare becomes a concern. However, there is lacking of scientific facts to prove which slaughtering methods produce better physiological effects on animals from metabolomics view. Therefore, metabolomics approach by Liquid Chromatography-Time of Flight-Mass Spectrometry (LC-TOF-MS) was used in this study to understand how the metabolites in poultry change when subjected to different slaughtering processes. The broiler chickens were subjected to Halal (Islamic tradition) and non-Halal slaughtering method (neck poking) where pectoral major muscle tissues from the slaughtered meat were selected for UHPLC-TOF-MS analysis. Metabolome data highlighted multiple pathways affected by slaughtering methods including glucose, amino acid, inosine, hypoxanthine and arginine. Higher utilization of energy in non-Halal slaughtering process was observed as indicated by the increase of gluconeogenesis and amino acid breakdown. The result from this study indicated that the method of slaughter affects the metabolites profile of poultry.

In Malaysia halal meat is fully defined by Jabatan Kemajuan Islam Malaysia (JAKIM) based on the killing method. Halal meat is usually associated with quality as Muslim sought meat from animal killed using Islamic method. In order to ensure the food are meeting the Halal and thoyyiban aspects, the procedure must be monitored along the supply chains beginning from farm to fork. However, there are lack of studies on effect of slaughtering methods on chickens’ metabolite profile. Therefore, metabolomics approach by Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) And Ultra High Performance Liquid Chromatography-Time of Flight-Mass Spectrometry (UHPLC-TOF-MS) are used in this study to understand the metabolite profile of chickens when subjected to different slaughtering process. The broiler chickens were subjected to Halal (Islamic tradition) and non-Halal slaughtering method (neck poking) where pectoral major muscle tissues from the slaughtered meat were selected for FTIR and UHPLC-TOF-MS analysis. Results from FTIR analysis showed Halal and non-Halal chicken displayed different spectra regardless time of extraction, which was 0 and 24 hours. Spectra obtained from UHPLC-TOF-MS were further analyzed for statistical analysis, which are Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Partial Least-Squares Discriminant Analysis (PLS-DA) using MetaboAnalyst 4.0. PLS-DA model showed higher intensity of histidine and inosine was recorded in non-Halal chicken while Halal chicken has higher concentration of hypoxanthine. Result from this study indicates that method of slaughter affects the metabolite profile of chicken. © 2020, Malaysian Society of Applied Biology. All rights reserved.