This study was conducted to elucidate the effects of feeding betaine or monosodium glutamate on the growth and carcass performance of Hanwoo steers according to the fattening stage under high-temperature stress. Farms in an area where THI was 78 or higher for more than 100 days were selected, and 30 head in the early fattening stage (14-15 months of age), 30 head in the mid-fattening stage (16-18 months of age), and 30 head in the late fattening stage (24-25 months of age) were tested, and 10 head were assigned to each treatment group. The experimental group was divided into control, T1 with 96% of the amino acid compound additive and 4% betaine, and T2 with the amino acid complex additive and 4% monosodium glutamate. 50 g per head were fed every morning for a total of 5 months from May 1, 2022 to September 30. In this study, there was no effect of betaine and monosodium glutamate on the growth and rectal temperature of Hanwoo steers at each fattening stage, but monosodium glutamate had a positive effect on the increase in rib eye area and decrease in back fat thickness in steers in the late fattening stage (P<0.05). Therefore, the results of this study indicate that monosodium glutamate did not have a direct effect on the growth of fattening Hanwoo steers, but it is thought to have a positive effect on the rib eye area and back fat thickness through protein metabolism and muscle development.

This study aimed to investigate the effects of amino acid complex additives, such as protected vitamin C (VC) or detoxified sulfur (DS), on the growth and metabolism of Hanwoo cattle under high-temperature conditions. Accordingly, farms in Temperature-Humidity Index (THI) regions ranging from 78 to 89 for over 100 days were selected. The experimental groups were control, T1 (lysine + methionine + VC, 50 g/head/day), and T2 (lysine + methionine + DS, 50 g/head/day) with 70, 77, and 71 animals each. The range of the THI for 115 days was 78-89, and this occurred in most of the experiment days. The results showed that there was no significant difference in rectal temperature among the groups. The body weight increased to 786.4 and 809.0kg in the T1 and T2 groups, respectively, compared to the control group (p<0.05). Linoleic acid showed a high result of 2.01% in the T1 group compared to the control group (p<0.05). Unsaturated fatty acids were higher at 55.70 and 56.54% in the T1 and T2 groups, respectively, compared to the control group (p<0.05), and the omega 6/3 ratio was reduced to 20.10% (p<0.05). These findings indicate that T1 has a positive impact on growth, meat quality, and fatty acid composition compared to the control group. In conclusion, amino acid complex with VC improved the body weight of Hanwoo steers and the unsaturated fatty acids and essential amino acids of their meat; however, further research is needed to clarify this impact on carcass performance.