EN
The objective of the study was to compare the chemical composition of leg muscles of six duck strains. A total of 60 drakes out of four flocks of conservative (Miniduck K2, Polish Pekin P33-native, Pekin population-typeA3, synthetic Polish flock SB) and two breeding strains (A55, P66), aged seven weeks, were used for the study. The content of protein, lipids, moisture, essential amino acids, fatty acids and cholesterol were estimated. The muscles of K2 contained less lipids than the remaining ones. Fat of A55 and P66 leg muscles contained the least cholesterol. No significant differences in protein and moisture content were found. Isoleucine (Ile) and valine (Val) are amino acids limiting the biological value of meat proteins from leg muscles of A3, P33 and K2, and tryptophan (Trp) for A55, P66 muscles. Unsaturated fatty acids (UFA) were predominant in the muscle fat of all flocks. The fat of A55 muscles contained the most UFA. The highest level of PUFA was determined for K2 muscles. The PUFA/SFA and n-6/n-3 PUFA ratios were 0.74-0.92 and 4.17-5.66 respectively. The lipids of A55 were characterized by the best fatty acid profile among the investigated muscles’ fat. Taking into consideration the nutritive value of proteins, cholesterol content and profile of fatty acids, A55 leg muscles appeared to be the most favorable from the perspective of human health.