F. Jiménez-Colmenero

Healthier meat and meat products: Their role as functional foods

This review deals with the implications of meat and meat products for human health. It analyses the effect of the presence or absence of various factors: fat, fatty acid composition, cholesterol, calorific value, salt, nitrite or lipid oxidation products that can cause health problems. Bearing in mind these considerations, it then describes the strategies used in animal production, treatment of meat raw material and reformulation of meat products to obtain healthier meat and meat products. Functional ingredients are responsible for making functional foods work, and this review therefore discusses the scope of current meat technology to favour the presence of various active-food components, and provide an additional physiological benefit beyond that of meeting basic nutritional needs.

Biogenic Amines in Meat and Meat Products

It has been recognized for some time that biogenic amines occur in a wide range of foods, among them meat and meat products. Meat is an important component of the diet in developed countries. The presence of these amines in food is of interest for two reasons: firstly, for toxicological reasons, in the sense that high levels of dietary biogenic amines can be toxic for certain consumers, and secondly, for their role as possible quality indicators. Based on these two premises, the present article offers a new analysis on aspects of toxicology and on the use of biogenic amines as a quality control method, as well as on their presence in meat and meat products. The article focuses particularly on factors affecting the production of biogenic amines, with reference to various parameters relating to microorganisms, meat raw materials, and processing conditions. A better understanding of the factors determining their formation (i.e., microorganisms, raw materials used, and technological processes applied) and their effects could lead to ways of controlling their production, limiting their presence in the end product, and hence, rendering them less toxic.

Influence of different types and proportions of added edible seaweeds on characteristics of low-salt gel/emulsion meat systems

The effects of three different types of edible seaweeds, Sea Spaghetti (Himanthalia elongata), Wakame (Undaria pinnatifida), and Nori (Porphyra umbilicalis) added at two concentrations (2.5% and 5% dry matter) on the physicochemical and morphological characteristics of gel/emulsion systems were evaluated. The addition of seaweeds improved (P<0.05) water- and fat-binding properties except in the case of Nori added at 2.5%. Hardness and chewiness of the cooked products with added seaweed were higher (P<0.05), and springiness and cohesiveness were lower (P<0.05) than in control samples. Colour changes in meat systems were affected by the type of seaweed. The morphology of sample differed depending on the type of seaweed added, and this is the result of differences in physical and chemical characteristic of the seaweed powder used. In general, products formulated with the brown seaweeds (Sea Spaghetti and Wakame) exhibited similar behaviour, different from that of products made with the red seaweed Nori.

Technological and sensory characteristics of reduced/low-fat, low-salt frankfurters as affected by the addition of konjac and seaweed

This paper reports the effect of an edible seaweed, Sea Spaghetti (Himanthalia elongata), on the physicochemical (emulsion stability, cooking loss, colour, texture, residual nitrite and microstructure) and sensory characteristics of reduced- and low-fat, low-salt (NaCl) frankfurters prepared with konjac gel as a fat substitute. The effects on emulsion stability of substituting konjac gel for pork backfat were conditioned by the proportion of the substitution. Incorporation of a combination of Sea Spaghetti/konjac gel (accompanied by reduction in salt) increased (P<0.05) cooking loss and reduced (P<0.05) emulsion stability in the gel/emulsion systems. Incorporation of Sea Spaghetti/konjac gel produced a decrease (P<0.05) of lightness (L*) and redness (a*) values and an increase (P<0.05) of yellowness (b*) as compared to the other samples. The effect of adding seaweed on the texture parameters of low-salt frankfurters varied depending on the proportion of konjac gel used in the formulation. Morphological differences in frankfurter microstructure were observed as fat content was reduced and konjac gel increased. Incorporation of a combination of Sea Spaghetti/konjac gel caused the formation of a more heterogeneous structure, in which the seaweed was integrated in the meat protein matrix.

Low-fat frankfurters enriched with n-3 PUFA and edible seaweed: effects of olive oil and chilled storage on physicochemical, sensory and microbial characteristics.

This article reports a study of the physicochemical, sensory and microbiological characteristics of low-fat (10%) and n-3 PUFA-enriched frankfurters as affected by addition of seaweed (5% Himanthalia elongata), partial substitution (50%) of animal fat by olive oil and chilled storage (41days at 2°C). The presence of seaweed improved water and fat binding properties, reduced (P<0.05) lightness and redness and increased (P<0.05) the hardness and chewiness of low-fat frankfurters enriched with n-3 PUFA. The effect of olive oil on those characteristics was less pronounced than that of seaweed. Replacing pork backfat with olive oil in frankfurters produced acceptable sensory characteristics, similar to control, while addition of seaweed resulted in less acceptable products, due mainly to the special flavour of the seaweed. Formulation and storage time affected the total viable count and lactic acid bacteria count. Frankfurters containing olive oil and seaweed had the highest total viable count from day 14 of storage, with lactic acid bacteria becoming the predominant microflora.

Development and assessment of healthy properties of meat and meat products designed as functional foods

This review deals with the two major aspects to be considered in the context of meat-based functional foods and human health. One involves the different strategies used to improve (increase or reduce) the presence of bioactive (healthy and unhealthy) compounds in meat and meat products in order to develop potential meat-based functional foods; these strategies are basically concerned with animal production practices, meat processing and storage, distribution and consumption conditions. Since the link between the consumption of those foods and their potentially beneficial effects (improving health and/or reducing the risk of several chronic diseases) needs to be demonstrated scientifically, the second aspect considered is related to intervention studies to examine the functional capacity of meat-based potentially functional foods in humans, discussing how the functionality of a food can be assessed in terms of its effects on health in relation to both target body functions and risk factors.

Nutritional composition of dry-cured ham and its role in a healthy diet.

Dry-cured ham is a traditional product with a strong presence in markets in the Mediterranean area. It is very popular with European consumers and is of enormous economic importance for the meat industry in the Mediterranean area. Although the great palatability of ham largely outweighs other considerations, aspects relating to health and wellbeing are increasingly important factors in consumer decisions. The potential role of ham in a context of healthy nutrition has not been clearly elucidated, especially considering that origins and production methods of dry-cured hams can induce differences in composition. The object of this review was on the one hand to provide an analysis of the components of dry-cured ham and their role in a healthy diet, and on the other hand to suggest possible strategies for improving its nutritional composition.

Composition and antioxidant capacity of low-salt meat emulsion model systems containing edible seaweeds.

The study was designed to determine the influence of the addition of edible seaweeds, Sea Spaghetti (Himanthalia elongata), Wakame (Undaria pinnatifida), and Nori (Porphyra umbilicalis), on fatty acid composition, amino acid profile, protein score, mineral content and antioxidant capacity in low-salt meat emulsion model systems. The addition of seaweeds caused an increase (P<0.05) in n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) and a decrease (P<0.05) in the n-6/n-3 PUFA ratio. The thrombogenic index significantly decreased (P<0.05) in Nori and Wakame meat samples. Meat systems made with added seaweeds had lower (P<0.05) sodium contents than control samples. In general, addition of seaweeds to products increased (P<0.05) the concentrations of K, Ca, Mg and Mn. The presence of Nori caused an increase (P<0.05) in levels of serine, glycine, alanine, valine, tyrosine, phenylalanine and arginine, whereas Wakame and Sea Spaghetti produced no significant changes in amino acid profiles in the model systems. The inclusion of Sea Spaghetti increased the sulphur amino acid score by 20%. The added seaweeds supplied the meat samples with soluble polyphenolic compounds, which increased the antioxidant capacity of the systems. The polyphenol supply and antioxidant increase were greatest (P<0.05) in the samples containing Sea Spaghetti.

Design and nutritional properties of potential functional frankfurters based on lipid formulation, added seaweed and low salt content.

The aim of this paper was to design and analyse the nutritional composition (fatty acid profile, cholesterol, mineral and amino acid content) of low-fat frankfurters enriched with n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) (using algal oil to add 400mg of docosahexanoic acid - DHA/100g of product) as affected by the addition of seaweed (5.5% Himanthalia elongata) and the partial substitution (50%) of animal fat by olive oil (as a source of monounsaturated fatty acids - MUFA) or combinations of olive oil and seaweed. Reduction of NaCl level was also studied. The presence of algal oil produced frankfurters with high long-chain n-3 PUFA contents. The partial substitution of the pork fat by olive oil reduced (P<0.05) saturated fatty acids (SFA) and promoted (P<0.05) MUFA. A healthier lipid formulation (algal and olive oils and the reducing animal fat) produced a good balance of MUFA/SFA, PUFA/SFA and n-6/n-3 ratios. Although adding seaweed had little effect on the lipid and amino acid profiles of frankfurters, it does constitute a means to produce low-sodium products with important dietary fibre content, with better Na/K ratios and rich in Ca.

Characteristics of restructured beef steak with different proportions of walnut during frozen storage

Physicochemical (thawing loss, cooking loss, surface shrinkage, texture, colour and lipid oxidation) and sensory properties of restructured beef steak with different levels of added walnut (0%, 10% and 20%) were determined at various times during frozen storage up to 128 days. Cooking loss (CL), Kramer shear force (KSF) and binding strength (BS) of restructured beef decreased (P<0.05) as the proportion of walnut increased. Walnut enhanced (P<0.05) lightness and yellowness and reduced (P<0.05) redness. Frozen storage did not affect (P>0.05) CL, KSF and BS of restructured beef steak. Redness decreased (P<0.05) over storage for all samples. Lipid oxidation of restructured beef steak containing walnut was not a limiting factor for frozen stability of meat products. Frozen storage had no effect (P>0.05) on the sensory quality of restructured beef steak.