N.G. Marriott

Utilization of pork collagen for functionality improvement of boneless cured ham manufactured from pale, soft, and exudative pork.

This study was designed to determine the effect of raw material and the inclusion of pork collagen on the protein functionality of boneless cured pork manufactured from 100% pale, soft, and exudative (PSE), 50% PSE, and 0% PSE with either 3 or 0% collagen. A Randomized Complete Block Design with six replications was utilized as the experimental design. Inclusion of collagen decreased (P<0.05) expressible moisture and increased (P<0.05) CIE b* value. Differences (P<0.05) revealed that collagen inclusion caused the 0% PSE treatments to have a lower cooking loss for 100% PSE treatments with and without collagen and a higher protein-protein bind value for 100% PSE treatments without collagen. Utilization of pork collagen in boneless cured pork that incorporates PSE meat increases water holding capacity and has the potential to improve protein functionality characteristics of the product.

Utilization of response surface modeling to evaluate the effects of non-meat adjuncts and combinations of PSE and RFN pork on water holding capacity and cooked color in the production of boneless cured pork

Boneless cured pork was produced from combinations of pale, soft, and exudative (PSE) and red, firm, and non-exudative (RFN) semimembranosus muscle. Response Surface Methodology was utilized to determine the effects of soy protein concentrate (SPC), sodium caseinate (SC), and modified food starch (MFS) on the water holding capacity and cooked color in a chunked and formed product. Fifteen ingredient combinations were replicated three times for each PSE and RFN combination giving 75 treatments per replication. Utilization of SPC decreased (P<0.01) cooking loss and redness while increasing (P<0.01) yellowness. MFS decreased (P<0.01) expressible moisture, and both MFS and SC increased (P<0.05) cooked redness while decreasing (P<0.01) cooked lightness. Product formulations using these adjuncts demonstrate potential to improve the water-holding capacity and cooked color in PSE as well as RFN pork. This research also demonstrated that diluting RFN pork with no more than 25% PSE pork permits the formation of a high quality boneless deli ham roll.

Hydrodynamic shockwave tenderization effects using a cylinder processor on early deboned broiler breasts

In separate experiments, chicken broiler breasts were deboned (45 min postmortem, 52 min, respectively) and either exposed to high pressure hydrodynamic shockwaves (HSW) 25 min after deboning (77 min postmortem) or after 24 h of storage (4°C) respectively, and compared to companion control breasts. HSW were produced in a cylindrical HSW processor with 40-g explosive. Warner-Bratzler shear (WBS) values of the HSW breasts treated at 77 min postmortem were not different than the controls. HSW treatment decreased (P<0.05) the WBS values of the stored and cooked breasts by 42.0% as compared to non-treated controls. Cooking losses were not affected by HSW. In general, raw and cooked color characteristics (CIE L*a*b*) were not affected by the HSW. HSW treatment at 25 min after deboning (77 min postmortem) may require a higher pressure front or delayed treatment after postmortem aging to improve tenderness.

Tenderization of chicken and turkey breasts with electrically produced hydrodynamic shockwaves

Eighty early deboned (45 min, post mortem) postrigor chicken breasts were exposed (24 h post mortem) to two levels (number of pulse firing networks, PFN; 45% energy) of electrically produced hydrodynamic shockwaves (HSW). In addition, 21 turkey breasts (72 h post mortem) were HSW treated (two PFN, 72% energy). Samples were water cooked in bags (78°C internal). Two PFNs were required to decrease (P<0.05) chicken Warner-Bratzler shear (WBS) force by 22% from the control (4.67 kg). WBS force of the HSW treated turkey breast decreased (P<0.05) by 12% from the control (3.20 kg). Cooking loss was higher (P<0.05) in the turkey breast portions but not in the chicken breasts. The electrically produced shockwave process has the potential to provide chicken processors with the ability to early debone and produce tender breasts and to provide turkey processors with tenderness-enhanced fillets.

Accelerated production of dry cured hams

Ten uncured legs from the right side of the sampled pork carcasses (Study A) were vacuum tumbled with the cure adjuncts for 30 min (T) and 10 counterparts from the left side were tumbled 30 min, rested 30 min and tumbled an additional 30 min (TRT). Evaluations were conducted at 40 and 70 days after cure application for color, taste attributes, percentage moisture, percentage salt and NO(3)(-) and NO(2)(-) content. Study B was the same except that 18 legs were boned, tumbled and cured for 40, 56 and 70 days. The TRT samples (Study A) at 40 days sustained less color fading (P < 0.05) during cookery, but no differences (P > 0.05) existed among the uncooked hams. Increased cure time enhanced moisture loss and salt content (Study A) and color retention during cookery (Study B). The TRT samples had increased moisture loss and salt content (Study A).

PSE-like turkey breast enhancement through adjunct incorporation in a chunked and formed deli roll

A randomized complete block design with five treatments (100% pale, soft, and exudative-like (PSE-like), 100% PSE-like+1.5% collagen, 100% PSE-like+0.30% κ-/ι-carrageenan, 100% PSE-like+1.5% soy protein concentrate, and 100% Normal) and six replications was utilized to test the effects of meat raw material, turkey collagen (TC), soy protein concentrate (SPC), and carrageenan (CG) on protein functionality in the formulation of chunked and formed turkey breast. Addition of 1.5% SPC and 1.5% TC both decreased (P<0.05) cooking loss and increased (P<0.005) the protein bind of treatments formulated with 100% PSE-like raw material. Purge loss decreased (P<0.05) in PSE-like raw material when 1.5% TC, 1.5% SPC, or 0.30% CG were utilized, and no differences (P>0.05) existed in consumer acceptability among treatments. This research demonstrates the potential to increase the water holding capacity and improve the texture of deli rolls from PSE-like raw material through the incorporation of collagen, soy protein, or carrageenan.

Accelerated dry curing of hams

Uncured pork legs from the right side of 18 carcasses were treated with a Ross Tenderizer and the left side were controls. All 36 samples were dry-cured for 40, 56 or 70 days and evaluated for appearance traits, cure penetration characteristics, microbial load, Kramer Shear force and taste attributes. The tenderization treatment had no effect (P > 0·05) on visual color or cure penetration rate, weight loss before curing, percentage moisture, nitrate level, nitrite level, total plate count, anaerobic counts, psychrotrophic counts, objective and subjective tenderness measurements or juiciness. However, the higher values of salt suggested a possible acceleration of the dry cure penetration process among the tenderized samples. Cure time had no effect (P > 0·05) on percentage moisture, percentage salt, nitrate content, nitrite content, shear force and juiciness. Results suggest a limited effect of the mechanical tenderization process on certain traits related to dry curing and that total process time should be at least 70 days if color stability during cooking is desired.

Antioxidative effects of encapsulated sodium tripolyphosphate and encapsulated sodium acid pyrophosphate in ground beef patties cooked immediately after antioxidant incorporation and stored

Ground beef with 1% NaCl was incorporated with 0.5% unencapsulated sodium tripolyphosphate (uSTP), 0.5% encapsulated sodium tripolyphosphate (eSTP), 0.5% unencapsulated sodium acid pyrophosphate (uSAPP), or 0.5% encapsulated sodium acid pyrophosphate (eSAPP) prior to being cooked and stored (0 or 6 d, 3 °C). The pH was higher (P<0.05) for sodium tripolyphosphate samples (6 d: uSTP 5.98; eSTP 5.89) and lower (P<0.05) for sodium acid pyrophosphate (6 d: uSAPP 5.31, eSAPP 5.33) samples than control sample (6 d, 5.50). Overall, samples with uSTP had the least cooking loss and lowest TBARS values. TBARS (mg/kg) for the phosphate treatments were lower (P<0.05; ave. 1.78, 0 d; 3.49, 6 d) than for the control samples (3.07, 0 d; 22.85, 6 d). Therefore, phosphate incorporation into ground beef prior to cooking aids in the reduction of oxidation in the cooked, stored product, although a longer period of time before thermal processing may be necessary for the encapsulated phosphate to have significant benefits.

Meat and Poultry Plant Sanitation

An efficient cleaning system can significantly reduce labor costs in meat and poultry plants. The optimal cleaning system depends on the type of soil and type of equipment present. High-pressure, low-volume cleaning equipment is normally the most effective for removing heavy organic soil, especially when deposits are located in areas that are difficult to reach and penetrate. However, foam, slurry, and gel cleaning have become more prominent because cleaning is quicker and cleaners are easier to apply using these media. Because of high equipment costs and cleaning limitations, cleaning-in-place (CIP) systems are typically limited primarily to applications that involve large storage containers.

Dairy Processing Plant Sanitation

Plant layout and construction affect microbial contamination and overall wholesomeness of the product. It is especially important to ensure that clean air and water are available and that surfaces in contact with dairy foods do not react with the products. Soils that are found in dairy plants include minerals, proteins, lipids, carbohydrates, water, dust, lubricants, cleaning compounds, sanitizers, and microorganisms. Effective sanitation practices can reduce soil deposition and effectively remove soil and microorganisms through the optimal combination of chemical and mechanical energy and sanitizers. This condition is accomplished through the appropriate selection of clean water, cleaning compounds, cleaning and sanitizing equipment, and sanitizers for each cleaning application. A current trend has been toward modification of cleaning-in-place (CIP) systems to permit final rinses to be utilized as makeup water for the cleaning solution of the following cleaning cycle and to segregate and recover initial product-water rinses to minimize waste discharges. Every processing facility should verify the effectiveness of its cleaning and sanitation program through daily microbial analyses of both product and various equipment and areas. Recent advances in technology have allowed tracking of cleaners and sanitizers in the CIP system. In addition, current computer, sensor, and traced chemistry technology allows real-time understanding of concentration in CIP systems so that system variation can be monitored and corrective actions can be taken.