Vacuum-Packed Beef Primals with Extremely Long Shelf Life Have Unusual Microbiological Counts

2012 ◽  
Vol 75 (8) ◽  
pp. 1524-1527 ◽  
Author(s):  
ALISON HOLDHUS SMALL ◽  
IAN JENSON ◽  
ANDREAS KIERMEIER ◽  
JOHN SUMNER

When vacuum-packed striploins and cube rolls processed by six Australian establishments were stored at −0.5°C to determine their shelf life, all product was acceptable organoleptically for at least 26 weeks. The aerobic plate counts and counts of lactic acid bacteria over the storage period did not accord with those established by previous studies, i.e., stationary phase attained at 7 to 8 log CFU/cm2 after 5 to 8 weeks followed by the development of negative sensory characteristics around 12 to 16 weeks. Rather, counts rarely progressed to 7 log CFU/cm2 even after 30 weeks. It is believed that the combined effects of meat pH, temperature, and CO2 concentration may combine to create conditions in which little or no growth occurs.

2007 ◽  
Vol 70 (3) ◽  
pp. 722-728 ◽  
Author(s):  
ANTONIO BEVILACQUA ◽  
MARIA ROSARIA CORBO ◽  
MILENA SINIGAGLIA

The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of packaging atmosphere and a thymol dipping solution on the shelf life of caprese salad. Caprese salad was prepared with sliced tomatoes and mozzarella cheese. The samples were pretreated by dipping in a 400-ppm thymol solution and then packaged under air or under a modified atmosphere (65% N2, 30% CO2, and 5% O2). Changes in natural microflora of mozzarella and tomato, the O2 and CO2 in the head space, pH, and sensory characteristics were monitored during storage. The combination of the thymol dip and the modified atmosphere decreased the coliform populations in caprese salad from 5.65 to 4.23 log CFU·g−1 and extended the shelf life from 3.77 to 12 days. A decrease in the concentration of Pseudomonadaceae from 7.03 to 5.09 log CFU·g−1 was observed, and the lag phase was prolonged to approximately 3 days. The combination of the modified atmosphere and thymol did not affect the growth kinetics of lactic acid bacteria and enterococci, thus preserving the function of mozzarella cheese in the salad.


2006 ◽  
Vol 72 (1) ◽  
pp. 124-134 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Koutsoumanis ◽  
A. Stamatiou ◽  
P. Skandamis ◽  
G.-J. E. Nychas

ABSTRACT The changes in microbial flora and sensory characteristics of fresh ground meat (beef and pork) with pH values ranging from 5.34 to 6.13 were monitored at different isothermal storage temperatures (0 to 20°C) under aerobic conditions. At all conditions tested, pseudomonads were the predominant bacteria, followed by Brochothrix thermosphacta, while the other members of the microbial association (e.g., lactic acid bacteria and Enterobacteriaceae) remained at lower levels. The results from microbiological and sensory analysis showed that changes in pseudomonad populations followed closely sensory changes during storage and could be used as a good index for spoilage of aerobically stored ground meat. The kinetic parameters (maximum specific growth rate [μmax] and the duration of lag phase [λ]) of the spoilage bacteria were modeled by using a modified Arrhenius equation for the combined effect of temperature and pH. Meat pH affected growth of all spoilage bacteria except that of lactic acid bacteria. The “adaptation work,” characterized by the product of μmax and λ(μmax × λ) was found to be unaffected by temperature for all tested bacteria but was affected by pH for pseudomonads and B. thermosphacta. For the latter bacteria, a negative linear correlation between ln(μmax × λ) and meat pH was observed. The developed models were further validated under dynamic temperature conditions using different fluctuating temperatures. Graphical comparison between predicted and observed growth and the examination of the relative errors of predictions showed that the model predicted satisfactorily growth under dynamic conditions. Predicted shelf life based on pseudomonads growth was slightly shorter than shelf life observed by sensory analysis with a mean difference of 13.1%. The present study provides a “ready-to-use,” well-validated model for predicting spoilage of aerobically stored ground meat. The use of the model by the meat industry can lead to effective management systems for the optimization of meat quality.


Foods ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 2980
Author(s):  
Tareq M. Osaili ◽  
Fayeza Hasan ◽  
Anas A. Al-Nabulsi ◽  
Dinesh Kumar Dhanasekaran ◽  
Reyad Shaker Obaid ◽  
...  

The use of essential oils (EOs) and/or vacuum packaging (VP) with meats could increase product shelf-life. However, no studies investigating the effect of EOs and VP on camel meat background microbiota have been conducted previously. The study aimed to analyze the antimicrobial effect of essential oils (EOs) carvacrol (CA), cinnamaldehyde (CI), and thymol (TH) at 1 or 2% plus vacuum packaging (VP) on the growth of spoilage-causing microorganisms in marinated camel meat chunks during storage at 4 and 10 °C. VP is an effective means to control spoilage in unmarinated camel meat (CM) and marinated camel meat (MCM) compared to aerobic packaging (AP). However, after EO addition to MCM, maximum decreases in spoilage-causing microorganisms were observed under AP on day 7. Increasing the temperature from 4 to 10 °C under AP increased the rate of spoilage-causing bacterial growth in CM and MCM; however, EOs were more effective at 10 °C. At 10 °C the maximum reductions in total mesophilic plate counts, yeast and molds, mesophilic lactic Acid bacteria, Enterobacteriaceae, and Pseudomonas spp. were 1.2, 1.4, 2.1, 3.1, and 4.8 log CFU/g, respectively. Incorporating EOs at 2% in MCM, held aerobically under temperature abuse conditions, delayed spoilage.


2013 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 216-225 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marco Antonio Trindade ◽  
Nilda Doris Montes Villanueva ◽  
Catharine Vendemiatto Antunes ◽  
Maria Teresa de Alvarenga Freire

Lamb meat has been commercialized in Brazil almost exclusively as a frozen product due to the longer shelf life provided by freezing when compared to refrigeration. However, as a result of the current trend of increased demand for convenience products, a need has emerged for further studies to facilitate the marketing of refrigerated lamb cuts. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the contribution of active packaging technology in extending the shelf life of lamb loins (Longissimus lumborum) stored under refrigeration (1±1 ° C) when compared to the traditional vacuum packaging. For this purpose, two kinds of sachets were employed: oxygen scavenger sachet and oxygen scavenger/carbon dioxide emitter sachet. Experiments were conducted in three treatments: 1) Vacuum (Control), 2) Vacuum + oxygen scavenger sachet and 3) Vacuum + oxygen scavenger/carbon dioxide emitter sachet. Microbiological (counts of anaerobic psychrotrophs, coliform at 45 ° C, coagulase-positive staphylococci, Salmonella and lactic acid bacteria) and physical-chemical (thiobarbituric acid reactive substances, objective color, pH value, water loss from cooking and shear force) analyses were carried out weekly for a total storage period of 28 days. The experiment was performed three times for all treatments. Results showed that the lamb meat remained stable with respect to the majority of the evaluated physical and chemical indexes and remained within the standards established by Brazilian legislation for pathogenic microorganisms throughout the storage period in all three packaging systems. However, all treatments presented elevated counts of anaerobic psychrotrophic microorganisms and lactic acid bacteria, reaching values above 10(7) CFU/g at 28 days of storage. Thus, under the conditions tested, neither the oxygen scavenger sachet nor the dual function sachet (oxygen scavenger/carbon dioxide emitter) were able to extend the shelf life of refrigerated lamb loin when added to this meat vacuum packaged.


Foods ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 768
Author(s):  
Christos Bontsidis ◽  
Athanasios Mallouchos ◽  
Antonia Terpou ◽  
Anastasios Nikolaou ◽  
Georgia Batra ◽  
...  

On the frame of this research survey, a novel potentially probiotic strain (Lactobacillus paracasei SP5) recently isolated from kefir grains was evaluated for chokeberry juice fermentation. Chokeberry juice was retrieved from the variety Aronia melanocarpa, a plant known to provide small, dark berries and to be one of the richest sources of antioxidants. The juice was subsequently fermented inoculating L. paracasei SP5 for 48 h at 30 °C. The fermented juices were left at 4 °C and tested regarding microbiological and physicochemical characteristics for 4 weeks. The potentially probiotic strain was proved capable of performing lactic acid fermentation at 30 °C. Cell viability of L. paracasei was detected in high levels during fermentation and the whole storage period, while the fermented juice showed higher levels of viability in juice with 40.3 g/L of initial sugar concentration. No ethanol was detected in the final fermented juice. Fermented chokeberry juice was characterized by aromatic desirable volatiles, which were retained in adequate levels for the whole storage period. Specifically, the occurrence of organic esters detected in fermented juices is considered as positive evidence of the provision of fruity and floral notes to the final product. During storage, total phenolics content and antioxidant activity were observed in higher levels in fermented chokeberry juice compared with non-fermented juice. Subsequently, fermentation of chokeberry juice by potentially probiotic lactic acid bacteria could provide high industrialization potential, providing the market with a nutritional beverage of good volatile quality with an enhanced shelf-life compared with an unfermented fresh juice.


2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariya Dushkova ◽  
Siyka Kodinova ◽  
Zapryana Denkova ◽  
Velichka Yanakieva ◽  
Nikolay Dimitrov Menkov

Abstract The purpose of this study was to investigate the microbiological (number of viable lactic acid bacteria and bifidobacteria), physicochemical (dry matter, protein and fat contents, titratable acidity, and pH), and sensory characteristics (appearance of coagulum, taste and aroma, structure at cutting, color, and consistency at shattering) of probiotic Bulgarian yoghurts obtained by ultrafiltration of goat’s milk. These yoghurts were obtained using volume reduction ratios of 2 and 3 with the probiotic starters MZ2f, MZ2f + Bifidobacterium bifidum BB – 87, and MZ2f + Lactobacillus acidophilus LAB – 8. The increase in the level of the concentration by ultrafiltration led to an increase in the dry matter, protein and fat contents of the yoghurts, in the number of lactic acid bacteria and titratable acidity, and to a decrease in the pH. The twofold concentration by ultrafiltration resulted in a higher number of lactic acid bacteria in comparison with yoghurts made without ultrafiltration, and with better sensory characteristics compared to yoghurts without and with threefold ultrafiltration. The higher number of viable cells and better sensory characteristics were obtained for yoghurts with MZ2f + Bifidobacterium bifidum BB – 87 and MZ2f + Lactobacillus acidophilus LAB – 8 in comparison with MZ2f alone.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document