Investigation of the physicochemical, bacteriological, and sensory quality of beef steaks held under modified atmosphere packaging and representative of different ultimate pH values

Xiaoyin Yang; Jing Wang; Benjamin W B Holman; Rongrong Liang; Xue Chen; Xin Luo; Lixian Zhu; David L Hopkins; Yimin Zhang

doi:10.1016/j.meatsci.2020.108416

Investigation of the physicochemical, bacteriological, and sensory quality of beef steaks held under modified atmosphere packaging and representative of different ultimate pH values

Meat Sci. 2021 Apr:174:108416. doi: 10.1016/j.meatsci.2020.108416. Epub 2020 Dec 25.

Authors

Xiaoyin Yang¹, Jing Wang¹, Benjamin W B Holman², Rongrong Liang¹, Xue Chen¹, Xin Luo³, Lixian Zhu¹, David L Hopkins⁴, Yimin Zhang⁵

Affiliations

¹ Lab of Beef Processing and Quality Control, College of Food Science and Engineering, Shandong Agricultural University, Tai'an, Shandong 271018, PR China; National R&D Center for Beef Processing Technology, Tai'an, Shandong 271018, PR China.
² Centre for Red Meat and Sheep Development, NSW Department of Primary Industries, Cowra, NSW 2794, Australia.
³ Lab of Beef Processing and Quality Control, College of Food Science and Engineering, Shandong Agricultural University, Tai'an, Shandong 271018, PR China; National R&D Center for Beef Processing Technology, Tai'an, Shandong 271018, PR China; Jiangsu Synergetic Innovation Center of Meat Production and Processing Quality and Safety Control, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210000, PR China.
⁴ Lab of Beef Processing and Quality Control, College of Food Science and Engineering, Shandong Agricultural University, Tai'an, Shandong 271018, PR China; Centre for Red Meat and Sheep Development, NSW Department of Primary Industries, Cowra, NSW 2794, Australia.
⁵ Lab of Beef Processing and Quality Control, College of Food Science and Engineering, Shandong Agricultural University, Tai'an, Shandong 271018, PR China; National R&D Center for Beef Processing Technology, Tai'an, Shandong 271018, PR China. Electronic address: [email protected].

PMID: 33388717
DOI: 10.1016/j.meatsci.2020.108416

Abstract

The objective was to evaluate the effect of packaging conditions on bacteriological and biochemical changes in beef steaks classified here, as normal ultimate pH (pHu; 5.40-5.79), intermediate pHu (5.80-6.09) or high pHu (≥ 6.10). Steaks were packaged in vacuum packaging (VP) and modified atmosphere packaging with high oxygen (HiO₂-MAP) or carbon monoxide (CO-MAP). Headspace, bacterial counts, total volatile basic nitrogen, pH, purge loss, surface color, lipid oxidation, and sensory attributes were monitored over a 14-day storage period at 2 °C. HiO₂-MAP and CO-MAP of high pHu steaks resulted in a bright red color even when observed to be spoilt. Reduced purge loss and lipid oxidation, as well as increased sensory acceptability were observed for steaks with elevated pHu. Higher pHu was also accompanied by an acceleration of microbial proliferation. Of all packaging types investigated, CO-MAP exerted the best preservation, regardless of pHu and based on its antibacterial and antioxidant properties.

Keywords: Bacterial spoilage; Carbon monoxide packaging; Dark cutting beef; High oxygen; Total volatile basic nitrogen.

MeSH terms

Animals
Atmosphere*
Bacterial Load
Carbon Monoxide
Cattle
Color
Food Packaging / methods*
Humans
Hydrogen-Ion Concentration
Oxygen
Red Meat / analysis*
Red Meat / microbiology
Taste
Thiobarbituric Acid Reactive Substances / analysis
Vacuum

Substances

Thiobarbituric Acid Reactive Substances
Carbon Monoxide
Oxygen