Replacement of Nitrite in Meat Products by Natural Bioactive Compounds Results in Reduced Exposure to N-Nitroso Compounds: The PHYTOME Project.

Scope: It has been proposed that endogenously form N-nitroso compounds (NOCs) are partly responsible for the link between red meat consumption and colorectal cancer (CRC) risk. As nitrite has been indicated as critical factor in the formation of NOCs, the impact of replacing the additive sodium nitrite (E250) by botanical extracts in the PHYTOME project is evaluated.

Method And Results: A human dietary intervention study is conducted in which healthy subjects consume 300 g of meat for 2 weeks, in subsequent order: conventional processed red meat, white meat, and processed red meat with standard or reduced levels of nitrite and added phytochemicals.

Processed Meat and Polyphenols: Opportunities, Advantages, and Difficulties.

Currently, processed meats appear increasingly as a nonhealthy food because of their content of fat, salt, nitrite, and particularly in red meat, for the heme-iron concerning oxidant effect and radicals formation in human gut. and rosemary extract has been tested to counteract these effects and experiments were carried out to add polyphenols into whole meat cuts with the aims to improve their healthiness. The addition of these extracts can reduce the oxidation-reduction potential of products, increasing the antioxidant power.

Proteomics of Parma Dry-Cured Ham: Analysis of Salting Exudates.

The production of Parma dry-cured ham involves the steps of salting, drying, and ripening. Although sea salt is the only preserving agent, there are strategies being developed with the goal of reducing salt content in order to decrease its negative impact on consumer health. A 24 h pressure treatment was applied before salting to reduce thickness and inequalities in shape.

Micronutrients in Italian ham: a survey of traditional products.

The study provides original analytical data on the micronutrient profile of some traditional Italian hams, representative of the major ham categories produced in Italy: 4 dry-cured hams (Modena, Nazionale, Parma, San Daniele), 3 cooked hams (Cotto, Scelto, Alta Qualità), 1 smoked ham (Speck). Data on macronutrients (protein, lipid, moisture), energy, trace elements (Fe, Zn, Cu, Mn, Se), B vitamins (B1, B2, PP, B6, B12) and vitamin E level in the 80 Italian hams sampled are reported. Smoked and dry-cured ham were the richest sources of Fe, Zn and Se and, among vitamins, dry-cured ham had the highest level of B2, PP, B6 and B12; cooked ham provided the lowest energy intake.

Competitiveness and antibacterial potential of bacteriocin-producing starter cultures in different types of fermented sausages.

Application of bacteriocin-producing starter cultures of lactic acid bacteria in fermented sausage production contributes to food safety. This is sometimes hampered by limited efficacy in situ and by uncertainty about strain dependency and universal applicability for different sausage types. In the present study, a promising antilisterial-bacteriocin producer, Lactobacillus sakei CTC 494, was applied as a coculture in addition to commercial fermentative starters in different types of dry-fermented sausages.

Determination of nitrite, nitrate, and glucose-6-phosphate in muscle tissues and cured meat by IC/MS.

The endogenous nitrate concentration in fresh meat and the residual nitrate and nitrite contents after curing are related to food quality and safety. Most ion chromatography (IC) methods suffer from interferences, especially in fresh meat samples, in which the endogenous nitrate content is low, and in cured meat products, in which other nitrogenous compounds can interfere with the separation of inorganic anions. One of the major classes of interfering compounds in fresh meat are sugar phosphates, which originate from glycolysis during the conversion of muscle glycogen to lactic acid.

Determination of biogenic amines in chocolate by ion chromatographic separation and pulsed integrated amperometric detection with implemented wave-form at Au disposable electrode.

A rapid and selective cation exchange chromatographic method coupled to integrated pulsed amperometric detection (PAD) has been developed to quantify biogenic amines in chocolate. The method is based on gradient elution of aqueous methanesulfonic acid with post column addition of strong base to obtain suitable conditions for amperometric detection. A potential waveform able to keep long time performance of the Au disposable electrode was set up.