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This paper presents the characteristics and baseline use of refrigerant gas in the meat, dairy, and fruit and vegetable sectors. The data are based on different sources of primary information starting from a survey of the companies that constitute the three chains in different departments of Colombia. The results show that the management, use and handling of refrigerants is similar among the three productive sectors and that the most commonly used refrigerant gases are R22, R404, R507, and R134A. Moreover, 80% of refrigerants are traditional and 20% are natural refrigerants, especially in large companies that have managed to migrate to cleaner technologies that have less of an impact on the environment. The food sector with the highest use of refrigerant gas is the meat industry, followed by the dairy and fruit and vegetable industries. Except in the fruit and vegetable chain, the refrigerant charge for these sectors is less than 100 kilograms and refrigerant changes are performed in a period of six to twelve months. A consensus was reached that preventive maintenance and timely detection of leaks is essential for the efficient and rational use of refrigerant, and its reuse is not a practice that is evident in these sectors. The findings of this study are important for analysing how companies in the food sector, have implemented environmentally friendly practices related to vital refrigeration processes for the processing and conservation of products and for identifying controls and maintenance processes that generate refrigerant changes and reduce environmental impacts.

This study has analyzed food supply chains from the circular economy viewpoint with a focus on knowledge hiding. In this paper, we examine the practice of hiding knowledge among stakeholders, in which dimension, what this knowledge is and whether there are differences among specific groups of stakeholders. This is applied to distributors, producers, consumers, retailers, suppliers and farmers working within the meat industry in Turkey. It shows how information hiding affects the traceability of food supply chains and circularity in the meat industry. Three different theories have been examined in this paper. Stakeholder theory helps to analyze traceability of food supply chains among stakeholders; the theory of industrial symbiosis aims to achieve an efficient circular food supply chain through 9R (refuse, rethink, reduce, reuse, repair, refurbish, remanufacture, repurpose, recycle, recover) strategies by adopting traceability; the information theory is a key enabler to coordinate traceability from farm to fork to support a circular food supply chain. By using the theoretical lens, this paper sets out proposals for policymakers and managers in food supply chains to ensure traceability and transparency to achieve circular economy. Although some prior studies address knowledge hiding, information hiding hasn’t been examined with traceability and transparency dimensions in Circular Food Supply Chain (CFSC) in B2B business. This study attempts to fill this gap in the literature, improve theoretical understanding with our proposed framework and validating the impact of information hiding and reveal where knowledge is mostly hidden in terms of circular economy, stakeholders and 9Rs in the meat industry. A proposed framework for managers and policymakers based on a circular economy can bring social, economic and environmental benefits for the red meat industry in Turkey. Additionally, it offers a framework and recommendations for other countries and industries for possible adoption.

Background Carcass evaluation is a key process to ascertain the value and the quality characteristics of the animal at slaughter. In addition to being the base for monetary transactions between livestock producers and meat processors, in some countries, this evaluation also helps to determine the market allocation of cuts. Recent advances in non-invasive techniques are being tested for their potential to improve classification and grading systems in the meat industry. Scope and approach In this review, global grading and classification practices for pig, sheep and beef carcasses are discussed along with the latest technological developments in objective carcass measurement. We discuss a number of studies predicting marketable attributes such as yield (lean and saleable meat yield), eating quality attributes (inter- and intra-muscular fat, meat and fat colour) and carcass dimensions (skeletal structure, ribeye area). Technologies based on x-ray, nuclear magnetic resonance, video image analysis, ultrasound, bioelectric impedance and spectroscopy are discussed, along with recent developments and their possible future adoption. Key findings and conclusions Dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry and magnetic induction technologies have been commercialised for the sheep and pig industries, respectively. X-ray technologies and updates in video image analysis could go beyond grading to improve yield and cut dimension predictions. Some technologies could improve process efficiencies through cut sorting and enabling robotic cutting, while also enabling improved value-based payment systems. However, there are challenges associated with their implementation in meat processing plants and further research and development is required in some areas.

Nitrate and nitrite salts are important food additives that improve quality, safety and shelf life of meat products. Although their use is regulated, the concern about the use of E-number additives have been pushing researchers and professionals of the meat industry for alternative strategies to ‘clean’ the label of meat products produced with nitrate and/or nitrite salts. Natural extracts from cruciferous vegetables is an interesting strategy to overcome this challenge due to their high nitrate content. This review aims to discuss the main sources of nitrates among cruciferous vegetables and also their technological as natural additives in the production of cured meat products.

Health concerns have motivated salt reduction on diverse foods. Salt in processed meat usually reach high levels, and its reduction is not an easy task, due to its preservative action and expected sensory characteristics in them. Meat industry is looking for alternative solutions for both salt reduction and replacement. The curing time needed to reach the required salt content in meat products can be reduced by the application of ultrasound. Ultrasound technology has been applied for brining, marinating, tumbling, and cooking, with promising results as a useful strategy to reduce the salt content in meat products, such as dry-cured ham, bacon and chicken breast. However, ultrasound parameters should be optimized for each meat product, because structure and composition are diverse among products and the US effects be different. The purpose of this review is to highlight and summarize recent studies on ultrasound application to obtain low salt meat products.

Background Livers, by-products from animal processing, serve as an excellent source of high-quality protein and bioactive enzymes. The need for animal protein resources encourages the search for and use of unconventional supplies. However, animal livers are commonly sold unprocessed at a low price since their unique properties and high-value utilization have not been fully explored. Fully use of animal livers provides an opportunity to utilize existing resources of food protein to the utmost and reduce the environmental pollution from the meat production when these raw materials not properly processed. Scope and application Efficient and environmentally-friendly extraction of liver protein and its hydrolysates, biological activities and potential applications are reviewed in this contribution. In addition, value-added utilization of liver protein and its hydrolysates are discussed. Furthermore, certain liver proteins, bioactive enzymatic hydrolysates and natural enzymes, as well as their potential utilization in agriculture, food, and medicine are evaluated. Key finding and conclusions: Innovative technologies guarantee effective conversion of animal processing by-products into biologically active protein hydrolysates and procurement of high activity proteases. Animal liver protein and its hydrolysates have attracted much interest due to their broad applications in food, healthcare, animal feed and veterinary products. However, there is a need for intensive research on biological activity of liver protein and its hydrolysates in organism as well as on the regulation in animal by-products. Therefore, liver protein and its hydrolysates produced at industrial level would offer a value-added product for meat processing industry, and helps achieving resource sustainability.

The properties associated with NaCl make it a widely used preservative in the meat industry. However, the growing concern of consumers for their health, and the recommendations of international organizations, force the reformulation of meat products, reducing the salt contents and therefore, giving rise to healthier products. This leads to the search for alternatives that allow to reduce salt content in the product without modifying its technological and sensory properties. In this regard, the replacement by metallic salts is the most common strategy. Recently, its combination with the application of emerging technologies is being evaluated to obtain low-sodium meat products of high quality.

Background Meat has been an important protein source for human nu-trition for thousands of years and will continue to be. According to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development and Food and Agriculture Organisation's (OECD-FAO)outlook report 2018–2027, the meat consumption increased around 20% in the last ten years, and it is expected to grow another 15% for the next ten years. The harsh working environ-ment in abattoirs and meat factories, such as cold and wet operating rooms and long difficult handling of heavy loads, contributing to the shortage of a skilled labour forces. This, coupled with a considerable increase in the meat consumption, paved the way for novel approaches in the meat industry to ad-dress this challenge, with robotisation and automation of the meat factories being a necessary change. Scope and approach In this work, we review the current state of robotisa-tion for the meat industry and its adaptability to a new production concept called the meat factory cell (MFC). The reviewed systems are: (a) Frontmatec AiRA Robots for pork slaugh-terlines (b) Mayekawa Hamdas-RX for deboning pork ham; (c) SCOTT Au- tomated Boning Room for lamb slaughterlines; (d) SRDViand (Syst`emes Robotis´es de D´ecoupe de Viande) Z-cut robotic system to do the separation of the hindquarter and the forequarter; (e) SRDViand ham deboning system; (f) SRDViand ECHORD-DEXDEB, a robotic butcher left hand; (g) SINTEF GRIBBOT, a chicken fillet harvesting robot. Key findings and conclusions The slaughterhouse processes can be highly automated, with products available at the market, while the meat processing plants are mainly manual; deboning and fine cuts require a higher level of dexterity comparing to primary slaughter cuts, this leads to more researches of intelligent systems. In the other hand, a new way to process the slaughter products can lead to innovation and smarter systems on slaughterhouses, with the benefits to open new opportunities for smaller producers.

Microalgae have been recognized as natural, sustainable, and economically feasible resources of non-conventional feed ingredients able to promote benefits to animal growth and improvements in the meat quality. At the same time, microalgae biomass or their isolated compounds can be directly incorporated as techno-functional ingredients in a range of meat-processed products. This review provides the latest updates on the use of microalgae biomass as a source of nutrients in animal feed describing the main effects on the nutritional, technological, and sensory quality of the meat. Besides, relevant aspects of the direct incorporation of microalgae biomass or isolated compounds in meat-derived products are discussed, concerning changes in the nutritional composition, sensory characteristics, and technological properties. Finally, challenges and perspectives are presented.

15 pags, 5 figs, 3 tabs. -- Supplementary data to this article can be found online at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.csbj.2021.11.027., Many microorganisms feed on the tissue and recalcitrant bone materials from dead animals, however little is known about the collaborative effort and characteristics of their enzymes. In this study, microbial metagenomes from symbionts of the marine bone-dwelling worm Osedax mucofloris, and from microbial biofilms growing on experimentally deployed bone surfaces were screened for specialized bone-degrading enzymes. A total of 2,043 taxonomically (closest match within 40 phyla) and functionally (1 proteolytic and 9 glycohydrolytic activities) diverse and non-redundant sequences (median pairwise identity of 23.6%) encoding such enzymes were retrieved. The taxonomic assignation and the median identity of 72.2% to homologous proteins reflect microbial and functional novelty associated to a specialized bone-degrading marine community. Binning suggests that only one generalist hosting all ten targeted activities, working in synergy with multiple specialists hosting a few or individual activities. Collagenases were the most abundant enzyme class, representing 48% of the total hits. A total of 47 diverse enzymes, representing 8 hydrolytic activities, were produced in Escherichia coli, whereof 13 were soluble and active. The biochemical analyses revealed a wide range of optimal pH (4.0-7.0), optimal temperature (5-65 °C), and of accepted substrates, specific to each microbial enzyme. This versatility may contribute to a high environmental plasticity of bone-degrading marine consortia that can be confronted to diverse habitats and bone materials. Through bone-meal degradation tests, we further demonstrated that some of these enzymes, particularly those from Flavobacteriaceae and Marinifilaceae, may be an asset for development of new value chains in the biorefinery industry., We acknowledge financial support of ERA-NET Marine Biotechnology (GA no.: 604814) funded under the FP7 ERA-NET scheme and nationally managed from the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research and Norwegian Research Council, the grants PCIN-2017-078 (within the Marine Biotechnology ERA-NET), BIO2017-85522-R, PID2020-112758RB-I00 and PDC2021-121534-I00 from the Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad, Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI) (Digital Object Identifier 10.13039/501100011033), Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional (FEDER) and the European Union (“NextGenerationEU/PRTR”), and the grant 2020AEP061 from the Agencia Estatal CSIC. F.J.P and J.S-A. acknowledges grants PID2019-105838RB-C31 and PID2019-105838RB-C33 from the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI), Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional (FEDER) and the European Union (EU). Additional funding was received from the Norwegian Biodiversity Information Centre (PA 809116 knr. 47-14) and NORCE Norwegian Research Centre. J.W. acknowledge the use of de.NBI cloud and the support by the High Performance and Cloud Computing Group at the Zentrum für Datenverarbeitung of the Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen and the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) through grant no 031 A535A. K.S.M. is supported by intramural funds of the US Department of Health and Human Services (to the National Library of Medicine).

Designing meat processing systems can be a complex process since this type of cyber-physical production system has two distinguishing properties: divergent product routings due to the cutting up of meat (known as co-production), and variability in the outcome of production processes (known as random yield). In this paper, we present a model-based design framework for meat processing systems, which can be used for performance prediction and system validation of a designed system. We show how an agent-based production control layer can be integrated into a model-based design architecture for meat processing systems. Finally, this framework describes how to route products through a system with co-production and random yield.

Background Meat quality is a prerequisite to the consumer's acceptability and industrial profitability. Post-translational modifications, changes in myofibrillar protein degradation and myoglobin oxidation have a great impact on meat quality during post-mortem aging of muscle. Applying proteomics to search for protein biomarkers to accurately assess meat quality is a new strategy to ensure high-quality meat. Scope and approach The current progress of using proteomics to identify potential protein biomarkers of meat quality traits during post-mortem aging of muscles has been reviewed in this paper. The advantages and disadvantages of different methods of protein separation, identification and quantitative analysis are summarized. Some potential protein biomarkers of meat quality traits belonging to different biological pathways involved in muscle contraction, metabolism, heat stress, oxidation, proteolysis and apoptosis are debated. Recently, biomarkers have been used to characterize meat tenderness, color and water-holding capacity to better understand the biological processes and pathways occurring in post-mortem muscles, and their detailed molecular mechanisms are discussed in this review. Key finding and conclusion Post-mortem aging of muscle is a complex process that involves physical and biochemical changes at the cellular level. Clarifying the changes and mechanisms of muscle-to-meat conversion is of great significance in identifying protein markers for assessing meat quality. Previous studies of the biomarkers linked to meat tenderness, color and water-holding capacity are summarized. We found that some great challenges still exist in characterizing and predicting the accuracy, stability and industrial application of meat quality biomarkers. Based on these studies, future research about biomarkers of meat quality traits are proposed to tackle these challenges and to assess the meat quality more accurately. Therefore, applying proteomics as an emerging technology can be helpful to ensure high-quality meat and provide economic benefits for the meat industry.

Background Antioxidants and antimicrobials are increasingly becoming important additives in meat industry to extent shelf life and increase acceptability. Oxidative changes and microbiological activities have negative effects on the sensory, stability, nutritional and acceptability properties of the meat products. Mediterranean plant extracts and essential oils (EOs) have been studied as potential natural antimicrobials and antioxidant activity added to meat and meat products, as well as medicinal and functional properties. In recent years, plant derivatives are fairly becoming important in minimal processed products because of the high phenolic content, what allows to enhance the color stability and decrease off-flavors. Scope and approach This review provides recent information of phytochemical components, advanced extraction technologies and phenolic composition of Mediterranean plant extracts and EOs, as well as their antioxidant, antimicrobial, health promotion and sensory properties as natural preservatives in meat and meat products. Key findings and conclusions: A high concentration of phenolic and flavonoid content was observed in microwave assisted extraction (MAE), followed by ultrasound assisted extraction (UAE), conventional solvent extraction, and CO2 extraction. Phenolic acids and terpenoids were usually among the major components of common Mediterranean plant extracts and essential oils, respectively. Rosemary, garlic, lavender, leek, olive leaf, onion, oregano, pepper, peppermint, sage and Satureja montana are most important aromatic Mediterranean plant species used in meat industry and have exhibited similar or better antimicrobial and antioxidant properties than chemical preservatives. Flavonoids have beneficial effects on human and have been linked with the prevention of atherosclerosis, hypertension, dementia, diabetes and thrombosis.

The application of various functional protein additives in the meat industry is still increasing. Soy, milk and egg white proteins are applied to various types of meat product to improve their structural properties or as good substitutes for meat and fat components. It is common practice to add these preparations to reduce production costs. New methods are needed for reliable detection of small amounts of these additives in complex and processed food matrices regarding the potential for food adulteration and allergen detection. In this work, a mass spectrometry method was implemented for the detection of soy (Glycine max), milk (Bos taurus) and egg white (Gallus gallus) in smoked and cooked pork sausages. Specific peptide markers for glycinin and β-conglycinin, α-S1-casein, β-lactoglobulin, ovotransferrin and lysozyme C were monitored in the sausage samples. The proteins were detectable at the low concentration of 0.53% (w/w) of a given additive, which corresponds to a limit of detection of 0.14% for milk proteins and 0.45% for soy and egg white proteins in the final meat product. The results were validated by the use of synthetic peptides labelled with stable isotopes. Considering the universal nature of the presented peptide markers, the method has the potential to be implemented for other complex and processed foodstuffs for authenticity purposes.

Background Fake meat industry is expected to grow and to be worth $140 billion by 2030. Alternative protein can be produced by plant or microbe. Animal-free dairy protein can be produced by fermentation in microflora. Scope and approach In order to improve the real production, many companies are focusing on fermentation for animal-free meat, eggs, and dairy respectively. Key findings and conclusions However, their production capabilities, efficiencies, and costs are not available in public respectively. This paper reports briefly what is going on in sustainable protein alternatives.

Protecting public health by controlling Salmonella in chicken meat products continues to be a challenge to both industry and policymakers. Studies evaluating the combined use of commercially available antimicrobial interventions are scarce. The aim of this work was to develop a risk-based prioritization framework to rank chicken meat processing interventions that achieve the greatest Salmonella relative risk reduction. A baseline model characterizing the current U.S. broiler industry food safety intervention practices was created from direct observation of processes and expert elicitation. Results showed the combination of chlorine at the bird wash station and peroxyacetic acid at the on-line reprocessing and chill stages as the most common U.S. processing scenario. Irradiation at packaging and acidified sodium chlorite at evisceration were the most effective single processing interventions (98.8 and 91.6% risk reduction, respectively); however, no single intervention was able to comply with the current Food Safety and Inspection Service Salmonella postchill performance standards. The combination of peroxyacetic acid in at least one of the chicken processing stages with the current set of U.S. baseline interventions achieved >99% Salmonella relative risk reduction and ensured Food Safety and Inspection Service compliance. Adding more than one intervention to the U.S. current practice did not enhance (

SUMMARY Ducks have traditionally been a relatively small component of the global poultry industry but recent growth has been noted. As consumption has risen worldwide, the efficiency of duck meat production has become increasingly important. The nutritional formula is a critical economic factor because feed accounts for a major portion of the cost of raising poultry. The determination of optimal duck nutrition is necessary to attain the best live performance for ducks to maximize the productivity of duck meat. However, our understanding of the effects of feed additives in duck diets is still far behind our understanding of that in chickens. Enzyme additives in animal feed have been used in the poultry industry since the late 1980s, but there has been a lack of research effort into how enzymes can be applied in the duck industry. This review synthesizes the available information regarding enzyme studies with ducks. After reviewing the available information, it is concluded that it is worth further examination of how enzymes can be used to improve duck nutrition in the future. Enzyme studies are important because they are useful tools for improving the duck meat industry by allowing more efficient utilization of nutrients in feedstuffs and reducing the negative impacts of detrimental components in standard and alternative feed ingredients.

This study was focused on characterization of the genetic diversity of Listeria monocytogenes isolated from packed fresh rabbit meat obtained from one producer via retail outlets. The partial aim was to compare the characteristics of a suspect persistent strain with strains from human cases. The occurrence of L. monocytogenes in vacuum-packed rabbit meat was monitored during 2013 to 2016. All strains were characterized by serotyping, pulsed-field gel electrophoresis, and multilocus sequence typing (MLST). Selected strains, which represented each year, were analyzed using the whole genome sequencing method. L. monocytogenes was detected in 21 (38%) of 56 originally packed rabbit meat samples from one food producer during the whole monitored period. All strains showed the identical serotype (1/2a), AscI/ApaI pulsotype (735/2), and sequence type (ST451). The clonal similarity of strains from rabbit meat was also confirmed on the basis of core genome MLST (on 1,701 loci). This fact suggests the occurrence of a suspect persistent strain in the meat processing plant. Results of core genome MLST enabled us to unambiguously exclude rabbit meat as a source of listeriosis in humans caused by the indistinguishable AscI/ApaI pulsotype and sequence type, although all strains carried all genes important for the virulence of L. monocytogenes. No specific genes that may be associated with its persistence in the food processing environment were detected among the tested strains of ST451.

The objective of this work was to evaluate fungi present in raw materials, surface of dry fermented sausage and air of production and maturation areas from the manufacturing plants. The samples were collected in two industries (A and B) located in Brazil, at 0, 7 and 14 days of production, in two occasions. With the exception of some spices, raw materials presented low contamination in both industries. From sausages surface, a wide fungal diversity was recovered, with emphasis on Aspergillus and Penicillium spp. Air contamination was high in both industries, countless (>104 CFU/m3) in 2/14 of sampling from industry A and 8/14 from industry B. In industry B there was presence of Aspergillus westerdijkiae (an ochratoxigenic species harmful for the meat industry) both from sausages and manufacturing air. About half of species present in the air were also isolated from sausages. Since A. westerdijkiae has not been isolated from raw materials, a hard cleaning of environment, including dispersion in the air, would be essential for controlling this micro-organism and thus to prevent the contamination of new manufactured lots. Furthermore, environmental air can be considered a critical point regarding contamination of products and propagation of fungi in food processing areas.

A trial was conducted to determine the genotypic and phenotypic profiles of Listeria monocytogenes (LM) isolated from chicken meat and chicken-meat processing environment in an export-authorized industrial facility in Brazil. A total of 37 LM isolates were separated according to their genetic similarity by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE), classified by serotype and lineage using multiplex PCR, tested for antibiotic resistance using the disk-diffusion technique, and analyzed for disinfectant susceptibility using the minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) approach. The majority of the isolates belonged to lineage II, serotypes 1/2a or 3a. Genotypically, isolates from packaged frozen carcasses and knives & boards of the cutting room were similar to those of carcasses after chiller. Isolates from packaged frozen boneless thighs, however, were very peculiar. Regardless the origin, high level of resistance to peracetic acid, ampicillin and sulfonamides were detected. Overall, our findings suggest that the prevalence of LM in the cutting room is not sustained by the continuous flow of new bacteria, but mainly by an already established microbiota that persists in the environment. Therefore, more effective strategies of cleaning and disinfection must be adopted by the chicken meat industry in order to reduce the prevalence of LM in the processing environment.

Background A great number of plants have been studied in recent times in order to identify and isolate new components with nutraceutical properties. In addition, there is a growing interest in the re-valorization of industrial byproducts as a source of bioactive molecules. Scope and approach The present study highlights the potential of pine bark extract as a source of antioxidant and treatment diseases. Pine bark has a great content of bioactive molecules including polymeric flavanols, tannic acid, flavonoids and other phenolic acids such as caffeic or protocatechuic acid. Herein, we summarize the most recent uses of pine bark extracts in the food industry and for biomedical purposes. Key findings and conclusions Regarding the food industry, pine bark extracts have been successfully used as antioxidants in the meat industry and have been proposed as interesting additives for the juice industry and Songzhen noodles production. On the other hand, different Pinus spp bark extracts have been tested against a wide range of disorders -cancer, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, atherosclerosis, neuroprotective effect and other oxidative stress and inflammatory-related diseases. Both in vitro and in vivo assays suggest a promising future for pine as an adjuvant therapy.

Porcine plasma protein (PPP), a by-product of the meat industry, is considered for the development of eco-friendly superabsorbent materials due to its relatively high content in polar amino acids. Using glycerol (Gly) as plasticizer, different PPP/Gly ratios (50/50, 55/45, 60/40) were injection moulded at different moulding temperatures (60-120 °C). It is noteworthy that all bioplastics produced might be defined as superabsorbent materials, except those processed at higher moulding temperatures (100, 120 °C). Bioplastics moulded for 150 s at lower temperatures (60 °C) and using a holding pressure of 500 bar displayed the highest water uptake capacity (∼2,530%). Moreover, these processing conditions also resulted in lower thermomechanical properties. PPP represents an attractive and economic bioresource for the production of biodegradable superabsorbent matrices, which could represent an alternative to the extensively used synthetic materials.

Food safety is one of the biggest concerns of food industrial development due to the risk of foodborne diseases, which are one of the most relevant health problems in the contemporary world and an important cause of reduced economic productivity. One of the main sources of microbial contamination in food products are industrial surfaces, which are colonized by pathogenic microorganisms capable of forming biofilms, making surfaces into reservoirs and potential sources of cross-contamination to food products. A study was conducted to determine the microbiological contamination from different microbial groups on different industrial surfaces in a meat processing plant through implementing a sensor-based sampling system, with a focus on detecting L. monocytogenes. The results obtained showed two main groups of areas with greater and lesser degrees of microbiological contamination, determined as the total aerobic counts of the microbial group with the highest contribution. The areas considered as major contributors to microbial contamination were three of the sampled floors and the storage cabinet for tools, demonstrating to be important sources of possible cross-contamination. A total of four L. monocytogenes presences were obtained during sampling. Moreover, a direct relation was observed between aerobic counts and detecting L. monocytogenes, and three possible hypotheses were formulated to explain the connection. Last, a safety zone marking the limits beyond which the surface can be considered as a safety risk was established, although more studies are needed to demonstrate if these limits can be used as an internal hygienic surface control. The use of SCH sensors as a surface sampling system for the food industry have been shown to work effectively and with relative ease.

Hemp products available on the market may be used in meat processing as valuable sources of nutrients such as n3 fatty acids, proteins and minerals. They could be used to create functional meat products. The aim of this work was to compare the quality of pork loaves produced with the addition of hemp seeds (5%), de-hulled hemp seeds (5%), hemp flour (5%), and hemp protein (5%). The technological value and the consumers' acceptance were also evaluated. The addition of hemp ingredients increased the products’ hardness and the fibre content. Magnesium, manganese, iron and copper content was also higher in the products with hemp. Polyunsaturated fatty acids content increased in products with de-hulled and whole hemp seeds. Hemp ingredients containing hemp hull decreased the oxidation processes. There was no change in the microbial growth after the addition of all the tested ingredients. The overall acceptability was lower for the products with hemp ingredients, but the taste of meat loaf with de-hulled hemp seeds was comparable with the control product. Consumers declared their willingness to buy these products given the information about their positive health impact.

Behavioural demand tests are informative tools for studying animal welfare, because they asses the motivation of an animal to obtain a given resource. Pekin ducks are a species on which behavioural demand testing has not been reported, despite the continued growth of the international duck meat industry and recognition that welfare issues exist for commercially farmed ducks. This study aimed to develop a behavioural demand technique specific to Pekin ducks that could have future application to assess their motivation for a variety of resources. Stage one of the study determined if ducks could learn an operant push-door task, and whether door design affected ducks’ willingness to complete the task. Sixteen female Pekin ducks (20 weeks old) were used, where they were presented with two door types (tall or short) in a cross-over experimental design. Twelve of the 16 birds successfully learnt the operant task. Non-parametric analyses (Wilcoxin signed rank test and Mann Whitney U test) were used to determine the effect of door type. Order of door presentation affected willingness to exit the behavioural demand unit (BDU). Birds presented with the short door first were less successful at exiting the BDU than when presented with the tall door (p

Imported meat in the United States can become a food safety hazard if proper food safety programs are not fully implemented in foreign meat processing plants. Thus, exporting countries' food safety inspection systems must be equivalent to the U.S. federal inspection system to become eligible to export meat to the United States. The objective of this study was to validate the beef harvest Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points and food safety programs of two beef processing plants in Honduras operating under U.S. equivalency standards by evaluating the presence of Salmonella (plant A) and Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC; plant B) on hides. Additionally, evaluating pathogen transfer from hides to carcasses, as detected by preevisceration sampling, and the mitigation of transferred pathogens, by application of carcass spray interventions and determination of Salmonella presence in lymph nodes, was also conducted. In plant A, the presence of Salmonella on hides ( n = 30 of 687; 4.4%) was significantly greater ( P < 0.10) than on carcasses swabbed at preevisceration ( n = 7 of 687; 1.0%), after intervention ( n = 13 of 678; 1.9%), and in lymph nodes ( n = 14 of 691; 2.0%). In plant B, Salmonella was not detected on hide samples; therefore, data could not be used for validation of the harvest Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points program. Alternatively, STEC presence on hides ( n = 21 of 85; 24.7%) was greater ( P < 0.10) than on carcasses at preevisceration ( n = 3 of 85; 3.5%) and after intervention ( n = 1 of 85; 1.2%). Pathogen presence in plant B did not differ ( P = 0.306) between carcasses in preevisceration and postintervention stages; both, however, were substantially low. Both plants' controls effectively reduced Salmonella and STEC presence in postintervention carcasses.

Animal transportation and pre-slaughter procedures are major components of the beef production system, but cattle are especially susceptible to stress during those events. In addition to stress-induced meat quality problems that might occur, such as higher pH and DFD meat, stressed animals are more prone to carcass bruising, which represents negative impact for the beef industry, from producers to meat packing plants. Therefore, this study was conducted to identify and quantify some risk factors for severe bruising in cattle carcasses. A total of 154,100 carcasses from 5028 loads of cattle purchased by a commercial slaughterhouse were assessed, and the following antemortem bruise-related variables were analyzed: sex, cattle handling procedures, loading facilities on the farm, type of vehicle used for transportation, distance traveled from the farm to the slaughterhouse, journey duration, truck load density, and season of the year at slaughter. Data were analyzed using the binary logistic regression model and Poisson regression model, assuming the presence or absence of severe bruises and total number of severe bruises per load as response variables, respectively. All analyzed variables showed to be potential factors for severe carcass bruising. Cattle sex was the most influential variable, and the likelihood of severe carcass bruising was greater for females (P

Over the last few decades, an emerging, thoroughly globalized market for halal products has been generating increasingly sophisticated, diverse, contested halal regulations. Today, the Brazilian halal meat and poultry industry is among the world’s largest exporters of halal meat and poultry. Against this backdrop, this paper examines how halal meat and poultry production has been assembled in Brazil. Drawing on assemblage thinking and ethnographic fieldwork, this paper traces assembling practices of halal meat and poultry production and sheds light on how halal standards have been taken on board. Current research has conceptualized halal and other food standards predominantly as mobile, globalized knowledge objects through which centres assemble and govern food production at a distance. However, I argue that halal meat and poultry production is assembled through sites and their interconnections – including sites of production and others – rather than globally. The assemblage is constituted and shaped as power is transmitted through assembling practices (e.g. the mobilization of Muslim labour from abroad), and sites (e.g. meat processing plants, agribusiness cities, sites of Muslim workforce recruitment and migration networks). The findings suggest that future research on the “bigger picture” of halal should take the role of sites, practices and transmission of power into closer consideration, and address the nexus between halal standards, skilled Muslim labour and migration. Like Brazil, most of the world’s large halal producers are countries where Muslims are a minority population.

The international health community has stressed the need to raise consumption levels of animal-source foods in developing countries. Development programs based on so-called ‘agriculture for nutrition’ strategies emphasize the importance of smallholder livestock production to achieve these goals. While much of the literature has highlighted the high nutritional potential of such foods, little attention has been paid to infrastructural deficiencies for handling and processing animal-source foods, particularly meat. Such shortfalls in food safety have the potential to counteract some health gains, especially if renewed efforts to increase animal consumption are not combined with improved processing capacity. The spike in meat consumption among Muslims worldwide on Eid al-Adha provides a natural experiment to test the extent to which such food safety concerns are justified. Meat processing on this holiday often exceeds the capacity of formal slaughter and processing infrastructure, and thus provides an excellent opportunity to observe the implications of a rapid intensification of meat production and consumption across several countries. Using Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) data from countries in Africa and Asia, we estimate the impact of this holiday on the incidence of diarrheal illness among children. Eid al-Adha provides a plausibly exogenous source of variation in home or informally sourced meat consumption among Muslims, a natural comparison group (Non-Muslims) and independence from seasonal influences (the holiday follows the lunar Islamic calendar). We find that relative to non-Muslims, diarrhea morbidity increases for Muslim children following Eid al-Adha by 18 percent. No such similar increase is found on Eid al-Fitr, a similarly important Muslim holiday without extensive home slaughter. These findings reinforce the importance of food safety concerns in livestock sector interventions.

The meat sector generates millions of jobs and billions of euros in value-added every year. The meat industries have a high demand for hot water, very variable in temperature, volume required and time interval. This demand, with large volumes at temperatures above 80 °C, translates into significant energy bills and CO2 emitted to the atmosphere, given the limited use of renewable energy. The present study, adapted to the unique demand of meat industries, shows that the use of Solar Water Heating Systems (SWHS) with evacuated tube collector can be profitable in a large number of locations and scenarios in Europe. The type of energy supply in the industry, together with the large differences in the price of energy sources in each country, drastically affect the size of solar installations, the reduction in annual energy consumption and the savings generated. In a medium-sized industry with energy demand close to 85000 kWh/year, investing in a SWHS in locations of high irradiation can reach profitability values of € 1.1 per € invested, paybacks under 9 years, supply of more than 50% of the energy needed, reduction of the annual energy bill over 40% and reduction of CO2 emissions higher than 15000 kgCO2/year.

In this communication we present a novel pig atlas model which is represented by a parametric linear Lagrange or cubic Hermite mesh. The model is developed from data points digitized from a 3D pig CT image. In total 84 muscles and 121 bones are included in the atlas, representing the tissue structures most relevant to the industry. We discuss its potential applications in virtual meat cuts and statistical shape analysis for pig breeding and genetics companies.

The application of electrolyzed water effectively reduces microbial contamination and has greatly contributed to delayed meat spoilage. However, concerns about applying electrolyzed water in the meat industry, which include the stability of available chlorine in various storage conditions, corrosion resistance and residual chlorate, have attracted much attention. In this study, primary concerns regarding acid electrolyzed water (AEW) and slightly acid electrolyzed water (sAEW) were evaluated in comparison to those of sodium hypochlorite (SH) widely used in meat processing plants. The results showed that closed and 4 °C storage conditions, which just declined about 30% ACC of available chlorine concentration (ACC), were more beneficial than open and 20 °C storage conditions for maintaining the stability of electrolyzed water, whereas no differences in stability were observed between dark and light storage. The decline of ACC positively depended on the concentrations of organic materials ranged from 0.1% to 0.3%, and the ACC was close to 10 mg/mL after 30 min trearment. The corrosion of AEW was equal to that of SH, but it was higher than that of sAEW. In addition, the concentration of residual chlorate in meat sprayed by electrolyzed water was less than meat sprayed by SH. The findings suggested that electrolyzed water is a great potential substitute for SH in the meat industry.

Oxidation reactions during manufacturing, distribution, and storage of meat and meat products result in undesirable physicochemical changes and aromas, which leads to detrimental effects on the product quality. This could be translated into the consumer dissatisfaction and economic loss. One of the most common practices to overcome this issue is the incorporation of synthetic antioxidants. However, the increasing health-consciousness of consumers and their preference for natural additives leads to the search of natural alternatives to synthetic antioxidants. A number of essential oils have strong antioxidant properties and are explored as potential alternatives to chemical antioxidants in the meat industry. These compounds are classified as Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS), and their application single or combined with other essential oils, ingredients or preservation technologies have beneficial effects on meat products. Their activity depends on several parameters including their concentrations, their possible synergistic effects, and the extraction method used to obtain them. Although steam distillation is the most common industrial technique for essential oils extraction, novel technologies have been emerged to address the drawbacks of the traditional extraction method and to obtain high-quality essential oils. This paper provides an overview of the application of essential oils as potential substitutes for synthetic antioxidants in the meat industry, exploring their mechanism of action against oxidation reactions, and the effect of extraction methods on their effectiveness.

Rabbit meat has become increasingly popular in China; however, the main available products are still as cut-up parts or whole carcass due to a lack of processing. Currently, rabbit meat products do not fully meet the consumer demand for convenience, thus hindering the further development of the rabbit meat industry. As the biggest rabbit meat producer globally, China has conducted a series of studies on rabbit meat processing and the development of new products. This review presents rabbit breeds, meat importation, exportation, and meat production in China. The development of the rabbit meat industry and research on rabbit meat processing are discussed. The main problems, including a lack of leading enterprises and brand products, insufficient investment and research, and the weakness of fundamental studies on traditional products, are highlighted. Furthermore, current trends of rabbit meat production and processing of being centralized and regionalized, as well as being intelligentized and standardized, are discussed.

Postmortem aging is a value-adding process and has been extensively practiced by the global meat industry for years. The rate and extent of aging impacts on meat quality characteristics are greatly affected by various biochemical/physiological changes occurring during the pre-rigor phase through post-rigor aging processes. This should also mean that the positive aging impacts on eating quality attributes can be further maximized through establishing specific post-harvest aging strategies. In this review, we propose the smart-aging concept, which is to develop innovative template strategies through identifying optimal aging regimes to maximize positive aging impacts on meat quality and value. The concept requires a good understanding of the physical, biochemical and post-harvest factors that affect the aging of beef. This knowledge coupled with the ability to non-invasively determine muscle composition early postmortem will create opportunities to tailor the process of muscle conversion to meat and the subsequent aging processes to deliver meat with consistent and improved eating qualities and functionality.

Meat industry co-products are sources of high quality proteins with excellent techno-functional properties and nutritive value based on their amino acid profile. Proteins, recovered from four different sources (blood plasma, exudates, brine solution and stick water), were incorporated as meat protein replacers in a meat based product (Irish breakfast type sausage) for demonstration purposes, at 10 or 20% levels of the total protein content. Plasma proteins at both replacement levels had the most positive effect on the analysed properties, compared to the control. Using plasma at 20% replacement level remarkably improved water holding capacity (19% vs. 17%), cook loss (5% vs. 14%), emulsion stability (9% vs. 14%), and essential amino acid content (48% vs. 47%). For other protein extracts (brines, exudates and stick water) only 10% replacement levels were acceptable to maintain the overall final product quality. A novel scoring system was developed to holistically evaluate the effect of replacers in the final product.

At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, there were various impacts on global food supply chains, including on food systems workers. Media reports documented COVID-19 outbreaks among food systems workers in the United States, however due to the ongoing nature of the pandemic, a thorough review of literature on the workplace impacts of COVID-19 on workers in our food system was scarce. This report reviews (i) the impacts of COVID-19 on global food supply chain workers; (ii) the existing and new vulnerabilities workers in this sector faced pertaining to workplace health and safety; (iii) the effectiveness of various initiatives or mechanisms to mitigate those risks; and (iv) how best practices could be incorporated into university institutional procurement practices. In order to narrow the scope of the research, this report focuses specifically on the human rights impact of COVID-19 on agricultural and meatpacking workers within the United States. Extensive interviews, as well as analysis of existing data and literature, found that the primary reason the frontline workers had a high risk of contracting COVID-19 was due to multiple pre-existing structural failures of historically eroded worker protections in the United States. Based on evidence gathered from desk research and interviews, the report coalesces around two sets of recommendations. The first is a broad set of recommendations focusing on policy and legal changes that can create greater protections for workers in these sectors. The second set of recommendations are for institutional food procurement actors, specifically universities, on actions to be taken to support values-driven procurement practices that can enhance greater protections for workers in these sectors through procurement decisions.

New plant-based meat alternatives that aim to mimic the taste and texture of beef could have significant economic, environmental, and animal welfare impacts if they replace animal-based meats and reduce livestock production. Whether plant-based meat alternatives can achieve these ends depends on the extent to which consumers are willing to substitute for plant-based meat alternatives, the structure of the meat industry, and the inter-linkages of the livestock industry with the other parts of the economy. We construct and calibrate an economic model to estimate how a reduction in plant-based meat prices, or increases in demand for plant-based meat, in the United States affect cattle production. For every 10% reduction in price or increase in demand for plant-based meat alternatives, we estimate U.S. cattle production falls approximately 0.15%, U.S. cattle producers’ economic welfare falls by $300 million/year, and U.S. consumer welfare rises by $513 million/year. Increases in U.S. demand for plant-based meat alter trade patterns, leading to a reduction of beef imports and an increase in beef exports, a phenomenon that further reduces global greenhouse gas emissions and land use given the relative efficiency of U.S. beef production. For every 10% reduction in the price of plant-based meat alternatives, we estimate that the global reduction in emissions is equivalent to 0.41% of U.S. emissions from beef production and 1.4 % when including carbon sequestration from reforestation of abandoned cropland and pasture and reduced land-use change emissions.1 Even substantial reductions in prices of plant-based meat alternatives are unlikely to have substantive impacts on the U.S. cattle population and emissions, suggesting the need to also pursue alternative mitigation strategies, such as innovations to reduce the methane emissions per head.

Persistent Listeria in food processing facilities is defined as Listeria that survives over time, even after cleaning and sanitation activities have been performed. Once persistence has established, it can be difficult to eliminate the Listeria. A rapid review was conducted to identify locations of persistent Listeria, risk factors for persistent Listeria, and interventions that have been successful in eliminating persistent Listeria in food processing environments. A systematic search was performed in Food Science and Technology Abstracts in the Web of Science database to identify studies; of the 1,656 identified studies, 32 met the inclusion criteria. These 32 studies were conducted in seafood or smoked seafood processing facilities (n = 12), meat or poultry slaughter or processing facilities (n = 10), cheese processing facilities (n = 4), sandwich or deli meat processing facilities (n = 2), a produce facility (n = 1), and un-specified facilities or facilities that processed multiple product types (n = 3). This indicates there is a need for additional studies specific to produce. Of the 32 studies, only 13 included a definition of persistence; however, the definition of persistence was highly variable from study to study, suggesting a need to standardize the definition for Listeria persistence. Floors, drains, conveyor belts, slicers, and tables were the 5 most frequently mentioned sites where persistent Listeria was isolated in the included studies. Only 9 studies that discussed risk factors for persistent Listeria; the 2 most common risk factors mentioned were equipment cleanability and lack of hygienic zoning. Eleven studies tested interventions for the elimination of persistent Listeria. In addition to summarizing the existing knowledge on Listeria persistence in food processing facilities, this review also delineates additional research needs, such as studies on Listeria persistence in produce operations and studies that identify risk factors for persistence as well as successful intervention strategies (i.e., corrective actions to eliminate or reduce persistent Listeria).

Meat tenderness is an important quality trait critical to consumer acceptance, and determines satisfaction, repeat purchase and willingness-to-pay premium prices. Recent advances in tenderness research from a variety of perspectives are presented. Our understanding of molecular factors influencing tenderization are discussed in relation to glycolysis, calcium release, protease activation, apoptosis and heat shock proteins, the use of proteomic analysis for monitoring changes, proteomic biomarkers and oxidative/nitrosative stress. Each of these structural, metabolic and molecular determinants of meat tenderness are then discussed in greater detail in relation to animal variation, postmortem influences, and changes during cooking, with a focus on recent advances. Innovations in postmortem technologies and enzymes for meat tenderization are discussed including their potential commercial application. Continued success of the meat industry relies on ongoing advances in our understanding, and in industry innovation. The recent advances in fundamental and applied research on meat tenderness in relation to the various sectors of the supply chain will enable such innovation.

Sheep meat is an essential element within the multicultural mosaic of Mexican agri-food traditions. A total of 332 consumers were surveyed face-to-face in restaurants specializing in selling traditional sheep meat products. Our results showed that consumers could be segmented based on their perceptions, habits, and preferences towards sheep meat. For consumers, sheep meat is perceived as food with unique sensory attributes, coming from healthier animals than other species and traditional characters. Their willingness to pay extra is subject to the guarantee that the meat is safe, free of hormones and antibiotics, and to a lesser extent, certified organic. The multivariate analysis suggested three clusters or consumer profiles named passive, wholehearted, and deep-rooted, which explained the associations among attitudes, some demographic variables, and consumption frequency. The nascent national sheep meat industry needs to consider these concerns in developing marketing and trust strategies to attract, maintain, and build loyalty among Mexican consumers.

During preparation, processing, and distribution, the spoilage of meat products has been causing a negative economic impact in the meat industries. In addition, lipid/protein oxidation and deterioration resulting from microorganisms' development are other concerns verified during the storage of meat and meat derivatives. In this sense, the meat industry has designed biopolymers-based materials containing biomolecules as active packaging to diminish losses and improve the shelf-life of these products. Here, we examined the loading of essential oils in the active films and coatings. Their impact on the chemico–physio–mechanico properties and antioxidant and antibacterial potential of the numerous biopolymer films for packaging meat and derived products are discussed. The potential use of essential oils incorporated into biopolymer network matrices of these films was also evaluated. This review also covers the biological effects of different types of edible films and the influence of these functional packaging on improving meat product quality. Interestingly, active films containing essential oil present a future approach and an environmentally friendly solution in the meat industry. In general, active food packaging revealed suitable technology to improve meat quality and reduce waste in the food industry.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the properties of skin-on and skin-off goat processing and carcasses for processing efficiency, fabrication time, biochemical factors, and sensory attributes for stewed goat meat. Thirty-one goats were harvested in 2 separate experiments, either skin-on (n = 16) or off (n = 15). The carcasses were fabricated into four primals and each primal was cut into cubes. Processing efficiency, carcasses yield, collagen content, moisture, lipid, ultimate pH, and sensory attributes were measured, and multivariate regression analysis were conducted. The skin-on group had greater overall yield compared to the skin-off group (P 0.01). Consumers rated goat shoulder meat with the highest overall liking compared to the other primals (P 0.01), regardless of skin present (P 0.10). Finally, lipid % was found to be the most essential palatability trait to American Asian consumers.

High pressure processing (HPP) is one of the most successful nonthermal technique adopted by the meat industry. Raw beef and poultry meat commercially produced using HPP are processed at intense pressure levels for microbiological safety purposes, which, however, have been associated with impact on quality attributes, e.g., texture, appearance/color, and oxidation of proteins and lipids. Research over the last decade has shown that HPP may be operated at mild settings without compromising bacterial inactivation when combined with plant-origin essential oils (EOs). This review discusses 1) the effects and the underlying mechanisms of HPP on bacterial inactivation and on meat quality, 2) the antimicrobial activities of individual or mixed EOs when combined with HPP, and 3) the development of statistical models for foodborne pathogen reduction using HPP involving multiple parameters, e.g., pressure level, holding time, temperature, concentrations of antimicrobial agents, etc.; which may assist in process optimization of HPP-based hurdle technologies.

Advanced glycosylation end products (AGEs) and N-nitrosamines (NAs) are common hazards in the processing of meat products. AGEs are produced by Maillard reaction and fat oxidation during processing and storage, whereas NAs are produced by nitrosation after the addition of nitrite during meat processing. They may have some relevance to human diseases, such as diabetes and cancer. Literature revealed that the contents of fat and protein in meat products and processing methods have a remarkable influence on the formation of AGEs and NAs. These two hazardous substances can be detected in a variety of meat products, and adding antioxidants can effectively inhibit the production of AGEs and NAs. This paper reviews the formation mechanism, influencing factors, detection methods, and inhibition methods of AGEs and NAs in meat products and discusses their exposure values in meat products to provide reference for people's healthy diet and understand and control the levels of AGEs and NAs in meat products.

Background Here, we describe a multifactorial investigation of the events of a SARS-CoV-2 outbreak in the largest meat processing complex in Germany. Methods Timing of infection events, spatial relationship between workers in the meat processing plant, climate and ventilation conditions, sharing of living quarters and transport, and full viral genome sequences recovered from PCR-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 cases were analyzed. Findings Transmissions occurred in a confined area of a meat processing plant in which air is constantly re-circulated and cooled to 10°C. Index case B1 transmitted the virus to co-workers in a radius of more than 8 meters during work-shifts on 3 consecutive days. Assessment of viral sequences shows that all cases share a set of eight single nucleotide mutations representing a novel sub-branch in the SARS-CoV-2 C20 clade. We identified the same set of mutations in samples collected in the time period between the initial infection cluster and a subsequent outbreak in the following month, with the largest number of confirmed SARS-CoV-2 positive cases in a meat processing facility reported so far. Interpretation Our results indicate climate conditions and airflow as factors that can promote efficient spread of SARS-CoV-2 via distances of more than 8 meters and provide insights into possible requirements for pandemic mitigation strategies in industrial workplace settings. Funding None.

Since the 1970s, in some European countries rabbit meat production has progressively become a highly specialized industry, which has made Europe the second (after China) largest rabbit meat producer in the world. However, the industry is currently facing a critical period due to structural weaknesses, progressive and constant reductions in consumption, and raising criticism related to welfare conditions and other ethical issues. This trend is questioning the future of the rabbit meat industry, which could lead to the loss of knowledge and technical expertise acquired over decades of major investments and research efforts (a valuable cultural and professional heritage for future generations). In the present review, we provide an overview of the rabbit meat industry, market and value chain, we depict consumer's attitude towards rabbit meat, highlighting strengths and weaknesses, and factors driving their current purchase behavior. Finally, we will attempt to outline possible strategies to ensure a sustainable future for the production of rabbits for commercial meat purposes.

Non-thermal processes are in demand in the meat industry due to their ability to inactivate foodborne pathogens, such as Escherichia coli O157:H7, at room temperatures. Although ultraviolet-light (UV-C) is a potential process for eliminating pathogens while preserving the quality of foods, its inefficiency in penetrating solid foods might result in a lower log reduction of pathogens in meat. Thus, it is necessary to look at hurdle technologies. Lemongrass oil (LG), with its antimicrobial, antifungal and antioxidant properties, can be an ideal alternative. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of UV-C, LG, and their combination on E. coli K12 inoculated goat meat. Lemongrass oil at 0.25%, 0.5%, and 1% concentrations (w/v) with intensities of 100 and 200 μW cm−2, which provided an energy dose of 0.2–2.4 mJ cm−2 of UV-C, was used to treat goat meat for 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12 min. The top surfaces of LG treated goat meat samples were treated with UV-C by these combinations of treatments. The combination of 1% LG + UV-C with 200 μW cm−2 treatment for 2 min resulted in a synergistic microbial reduction of 6.66 log10 CFU mL−1 (below detection levels) of E. coli K12 compared to the control, the level of which was significantly higher than individual and other hurdle treatments (P ≤ 0.05). No significant effect on the texture, whereas, changes in color and oxidative stability of goat meat was observed with LG + UV-C treatments. Although this combination seems to be a better option, treatment conditions need to be optimized and further studies are required to validate hurdle mechanisms for commercial applications.

The aim of this work was to evaluate the effect of meat curing agents on the bioprotective activity of the bacteriocinogenic strain, Enterococcus (E.) mundtii CRL35 against Listeria (L.) monocytogenes during meat fermentation. The ability of E. mundtii CRL35 to grow, acidify and produce bacteriocin in situ was assayed in a meat model system in the presence of curing additives (CA). E. mundtii CRL35 showed optimal growth and acidification rates in the presence of CA. More importantly, the highest bacteriocin titer was achieved in the presence of these food agents. In addition, the CA produced a statistical significant enhancement of the enterocin CRL35 activity. This positive effect was demonstrated in vitro in a meat based culture medium, by time-kill kinetics and finally by using a beaker sausage model with a challenge experiment with the pathogenic L. monocytogenes FBUNT strain. E. mundtii CRL35 was found to be a promising strain of use as a safety adjunct culture in meat industry and a novel functional supplement for sausage fermentation, ensuring hygiene and quality of the final product. Fil: Orihuel, Alejandra. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Centro de Referencia para Lactobacilos; Argentina Fil: Bonacina, Julieta. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Centro de Referencia para Lactobacilos; Argentina Fil: Vildoza, María José. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Centro de Referencia para Lactobacilos; Argentina Fil: Bru Chauve, Elena Magdalena. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Centro de Referencia para Lactobacilos; Argentina Fil: Vignolo, Graciela Margarita. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Centro de Referencia para Lactobacilos; Argentina Fil: Saavedra, Maria Lucila. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Centro de Referencia para Lactobacilos; Argentina Fil: Fadda, Silvina G.. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Centro de Referencia para Lactobacilos; Argentina