Application of supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO2) on the microbial and physicochemical quality of fresh chicken meat stored at chilling temperature.

Supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO₂) is a non-thermal technique implemented by food, pharmaceutical, and similar industries with the aim of inhibiting the microorganisms and apply effective sterilisation. Presently, limited number of studies has reported the application of SC-CO₂ on fresh chicken meat. The present work therefore aimed to reveal the microbial and physicochemical quality of the SC-CO₂-treated fresh chicken meat. The fresh chicken meat was subjected to the SC-CO2 at 14 MPa and 45°C for 40 min and was stored at 4°C for 0, 3, and 7 days. The obtained results indicated that the treatment with SC-CO₂ significantly decreased the total plate count and, yeast and mould count from log10 5.90 to 2.00 CFU/g and from log₁₀ 5.02 to 2.00 CFU/g at day 7 of storage, respectively. The values of pH, cooking loss, and water holding capacity were not affected by the treatment. The results revealed that the SC-CO₂-treated samples displayed harder texture, higher lightness and yellowness, and lower redness. In addition, lipid peroxidation of SC-CO₂ and control samples resulted in values of 1.9 and 0.5 MDA/mg of meat at day 7 of storage time and did not significantly change in the rest of the evaluation days. In summary, the application of SC-CO₂ was capable of enhancing the microbial quality and certain physicochemical attributes. However, alteration of certain parameters of SC-CO₂ might enhance the overall meat quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]