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Meat Quality and Safety

Objective

<OL> <LI> The meat processing industry will adopt quality enhancing technologies that will result in a higher quality meat supply and increased demand for meat. <LI>Consumer perception of meat quality and safety will be enhanced. <LI>Specific recommendations relative to meat cookery technologies, meat pasteurization, meat additives, and meat packaging and color will be made for user clientele.

More information

NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY: Meat quality and safety are critical issues for the livestock and meat industry. The technologies and strategies that will be research are focused on current industry issues.

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APPROACH: Antemortem and postmortem technologies and strategies will be evaluated as to their impact on meat color, palotability, and microbiological quality.
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PROGRESS: 2001/10 TO 2006/09<BR>
OUTPUTS: QUALITY: Feeding concentrate of goats (vs. range-feeing) increased carcass fatness, marbling, primal cut weights and percentages of total and n-6 fatty acids while reducing off-flavors and percentages of trimmed primals and n-3 fatty acids. Warner-Bratzler shear forces of non-enhanced strip steaks from fed cull cows was greater for steaks aged 28 d compared to 7 d, but steaks that were both injection enhanced and blade tenderized and aged for 7 and 28 d were found to be similar to each other and more tender than non-enhanced steaks aged 7 or 28 d. Tenderness of enhanced quadriceps and infraspinatus steaks from fed cull cows aged 7 d was similar to those aged 28 d. Younger cows produced infraspinatus steaks that were more tender than older cows. Restricting vitamin A in the finishing diet of calf-fed steers increased color stability, marbling and percentage of carcasses grading Choice by 10 percent while reducing external fat and having no detrimental affect on performance. Use of eye lens weight and dentition for predicting ages of cattle at slaughter increased the percentages of carcasses qualifying for less than or equal to 20 months of age) by more than 350 percent vs. those judged to be A40. Beef steaks packaged in LowO2 plus CO and in vacuum had improved color stability, appeared less well done, and had equal or better tenderness than steaks in HiO2 MAP. Desmin degradation was not related to tenderness. Injection enhancement improved tenderness, but not because of desmin degradation. <BR> SAFETY AND BIOSECURITY: The Pathatrix System concentrated E.coli O157:H7 in ground beef at ca.10 cell/25 gram in a 5-25 h. The Fung Double Tube Method concentrated C. perfringens in 6 h. Radiant Catalytic Ionization reduced Methicillin-resistant S. aureus on stainless steel surfaces more than 2 logs. A UV-based Photohydroionization Cell reduced E. coli O157:H7 surface counts of beef subprimals. Various combinations of thermal processing temperature and time were used to reduce E.coli O157:H7 and Salmonella in chopped and formed beef jerky and to screen xylose lysine desoxycholate, XLD, alone or thin agar layer, TAL-XLD, method incorporating selective media, XLD, and tryptic soy agar, TSA, for detection of Salmonella spp. injured cells. Reductions of greater than 5.0 log cfu/g were observed for both pathogens after 44 min at 55.6C dry bulb, DB, and 8-10 percent RH, followed by 45 min at 77.8C DB and 8-10 percent RH. Salmonella spp. counts on XLD and TAL-XLD were similar, p is greater than 0.05, throughout the whole process. Greater than 5.0 log reductions of E. coli O157:H7 were achieved in direct acidified summer sausages when thermal process was 2.5 h at more than 80 percent RH and at 64.4C or 68.3C. Whole muscle jerky with an internal hexagonal shape had a higher Aw by 0.01 units than diced pieces of jerky. No differences in Aw were observed between intact and diced pieces for chopped and formed beef jerky. Two starches, tapioca acetylated, phosphated di-starch, TAPDS 4-6 percent, and waxy acetylated maize di-starch, WADS 2 percent, were used successfully in development of thermally tolerant surimi seafood products. <BR> PARTICIPANTS: C.L. Kastner serves as project coordiantor. D.Y.C. Fung, E.A.E. Boyle, J. Unruh and M. Hunt are co-investigators. <BR> TARGET AUDIENCES: Target audiences include all research industry and government professionals with a focused interest in meat quality and meat product safety.
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IMPACT: 2001/10 TO 2006/09
Numerous quality, safety and biosecurity projects were conducted that had significant outcomes for a variety of audiences. Data were presented in peer review journals, at scientific meetings, in undergraduate and graduate course work, industry meetings and workshops, and with individual mentoring. These data equipped partners in animal and food science endeavors to make sound changes to their specific needs in food production from farm to fork. Many of these resulted in economic benefits in local, state, national and international business markets. Significant impacts were: 4 US patent applications. Improved management practices at the farm to production levels. Refined re-alimentation strategies for cows. Strategies for feeding ethanol distiller products to optimize meat quality. Reduction in aging times for various meat cuts. Utilization of microbial interventions to reduce E.coli O157:H7 on the raw materials used for ground beef. Environmental control strategies have been developed for Listeria monocytogenes has identified technologies that help prevent recontamination of cooked RTE products in the post-processing environment. Many of these technologies have been adopted by the food industry. Two thermal processes were validated for direct acidified summer sausage and beef jerky that achieved a 5 log reductions of Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Salmonella spp as required by USDA/FSIS HACCP plans and a greater margin of safety. Water activity (Aw) measurement can be used for determined the safety of dried shelf-stable meat products and by using an intact piece of whole-muscle jerky instead of diced pieces for Aw, processors will have a conservative, higher, Aw that provides great margin of safety. Improved cost efficiencies for livestock and meat production system such as: When using a Choice/Select Quality Grade spread of $10/cwt, carcass weight and an 800 lb carcass weight, there is potential for an $80/carcass increased value for carcasses from cattle restricted in vitamin A during finishing. If 30 percent of the cattle feeders in Kansas used this practice for about 4 million steers and heifers finished annually, this practice could increase revenue by $96 million with no additional inputs. The extended shelf-life and increased marbling also would benefit retailers and increase consumer satisfaction. International marketing would benefit from using eye lens weight to add $75/carcass of increased value for the 11percent of beef carcasses currently qualifying for the Japanese market, and if 30 percent of Kansas beef processors used dentition and eye lens procedures for determining age, a 350 percent increase in the number of carcasses qualifying for the Japanese market would result in $25 million increased revenue. Maximizing returns by Packaging steaks in LowO2 in addition to CO MAP and in vacuum resulted in optimum tenderness and minimal off flavors compared to HiO2MAP, but the purplish-red color of steaks in vacuum would not acceptable to most consumers.

Investigators
Boyle, Elizabeth; Kastner, Curtis
Institution
Kansas State University
Start date
2001
End date
2006
Project number
KS590
Accession number
188365
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