Effects of salt level and high hydrostatic pressure processing on frankfurters formulated with 1.5 and 2.5% salt.

The effects of salt level and high pressure processing on cook loss, emulsion stability, colour, textural and sensory characteristics of frankfurters were investigated. Two salt levels (1.5 and 2.

Effects of acid adaptation, product pH, and heating on survival of Escherichia coli O157:H7 in pepperoni.

The thermotolerance of E. coli O157:H7 cells (strain 380-94) heated in pepperoni is reported. Information on the pattern of thermal inactivation of E.

The effects of preslaughter washing on the reduction of Escherichia coli O157:H7 transfer from cattle hides to carcasses during slaughter.

Fresh bovine faeces were inoculated with a non-toxigenic, antibiotic resistant strain of Escherichia coli O157:H7, spread on the rump areas of 30 heifers and allowed to dry for 24 h. Ten of the cattle then entered the normal slaughter process without further treatment. The remaining cattle were washed with a powerhose for 1 min (10 animals) and 3 min (10 animals) before entering the normal slaughter process.

Effect of pH on survival, thermotolerance, and verotoxin production of Escherichia coli O157:H7 during simulated fermentation and storage.

Heat treatment is increasingly being introduced to fermented meat processing, since the acid tolerance properties of Escherichia coli O157:H7 can permit this organism to survive traditional processing procedures. This study investigated the effect of growth pH and fermentation on the thermotolerance at 55 degrees C of E. coli O157:H7 in a model fermented meat system.

Postmortem changes in muscle electrical properties of bovine M. longissimus dorsi and their relationship to meat quality attributes and pH fall.

Heifers (n=47) were slaughtered and hung conventionally in an industrial meat plant. Electrical impedance (Py) and conductivity (EC) were studied for their ability to indicate or predict selected meat quality attributes i.e.

Isolation and detection of Listeria spp, Salmonella spp and Yersinia spp using a simultaneous enrichment step followed by a surface adhesion immunofluorescent technique.

The use of a rapid surface adhesion immunofluorescent (SAIF) technique for the isolation of three pathogens using a single enrichment step from broth and enriched meat cultures was investigated. Buffered peptone water (BPW, 225 ml) was inoculated with Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella enteritidis and Yersinia enterocolitica to a level of 10 cfu ml(-1) and incubated overnight at 30 degrees C. Minced beef samples (25 g) were inoculated with the three pathogens to a level of 100 cfu g(-1) and incubated overnight at 30 degrees C in BPW (225 ml).

The development of a combined surface adhesion and polymerase chain reaction technique in the rapid detection of Listeria monocytogenes in meat and poultry.

A procedure combining enrichment surface adhesion and polymerase chain detection (SA-PCR) was developed and applied in the detection of Listeria monocytogenes in meat products. Minced beef samples were inoculated with L. monocytogenes (log(10)3 cfu g(-1)) and incubated for 10 h at 30 degrees C in buffered peptone water.

Preparation of surimi-like extract from beef hearts and its utilisation in frankfurters.

Surimi-like material was prepared from beef heart and evaluated in commercial frankfurter (30% fat) recipes at levels of 3, 7 10 and 15% by weight replacing lean meat. The addition of the heart surimi at a 15% level reduced (p < 0.05) cook loss compared with the control (6.

Non-destructive prediction of selected quality attributes of beef by near-infrared reflectance spectroscopy between 750 and 1098 nm.

Heifers (n = 70) were slaughtered and hung conventionally in an industrial meat plant. Near infrared (NIR) spectroscopy was studied for its ability to predict selected meat quality attributes, i.e.

Effects of fat level, tapioca starch and whey protein on frankfurters formulated with 5% and 12% fat.

The effects of fat level (5% and 12%), tapioca starch and whey protein on the hydration/ binding properties, colour, textural and sensory characteristics of frankfurters were investigated. Decreasing the fat content increased cook loss and decreased emulsion stability and product lightness. Fat reduction increased smoke, spice and salt intensities and increased overall flavour intensity and juiciness.

Factors affecting the emergence of pathogens on foods.

Recent times have seen the emergence of a number of new or emerging pathogens. Research is needed to establish the mechanisms underlying their emergence in foods, and their interactions with traditional food production processes. The paper reviews the general relationships between environmental stresses and pathogen emergence.

Some recent advances and future priorities in research for the meat industry.

The meat industry is undergoing a period of very mixed fortunes with beef in particular losing market share; however, longer term forecasts are good for all meat species with demand growth coming mainly from developing countries. This review deals in particular with the main problems that are responsible for the decline of beef as a consumer product in developed markets. These are the meat safety crisis and the unreliability of meat eating quality, especially tenderness.

The role of endogenous proteases in the tenderisation of fast glycolysing muscle.

The activities of lysosomal cathepsins and the calpain-calpastatin system were measured to determine their involvement in the more rapid tenderisation of fast glycolysing muscle. The rate of pH fall of M. longissimus dorsi (LD) of Hereford cross Friesian heifers (n = 52, Experiment 1; n = 36, Experiment 2) was measured.

The effect of temperature, pH and medium in a surface adhesion immunofluorescent technique for detection of Listeria monocytogenes.

A rapid surface adhesion-based immunofluorescence technique was used to detect Listeria monocytogenes from inoculated culture systems. The effect of culture type (pure, mixed and meat), pH (7.00, 6.

Discrimination between fresh and frozen-then-thawed beef m. longissimus dorsi by combined visible-near infrared reflectance spectroscopy: A feasibility study.

Investigations into the classification of meat samples as either fresh or frozen-then-thawed have been performed using near infrared spectroscopy and two chemometric techniques: factorial discriminant analysis and SIMCA. Work was performed on meat pieces using a fibre optic probe for spectral acquisition. A sample of meat (m.

Effects of fat level, oat fibre and carrageenan on frankfurters formulated with 5, 12 and 30% fat.

The effects of fat level (5, 12 and 30%), carrageenan and oat fibre on the hydration/binding properties, colour and flavour characteristics of frankfurters were investigated. Decreasing the fat content from 30% to 5% significantly increased cook loss and decreased water holding capacity and emulsion stability. Reduced-fat products were also darker and redder compared with the 30% fat controls.

The relationship between early post-mortem pH and the tenderisation of beef muscles.

The rate of early post-mortem pH fall in bovine muscle was studied to determine its influence on the rate and extent of the tenderisation process. The pH of M. longissimus dorsi (LD) and M.

Development of a surface adhesion immunofluorescent technique for the rapid isolation of Listeria monocytogenes and Listeria innocua from meat.

The use of a novel surface adhesion technique to isolate Listeria monocytogenes and Listeria innocua from an enrichment meat system was developed. Minced beef samples inoculated with L. monocytogenes (10 cfu g(-1)) were incubated at 30 degrees C for 14-18 h in a suitable enrichment broth.

The effect of vacuum and modified atmosphere packaging on the shelf-life of lamb primals, stored at different temperatures.

Lamb primals (shoulders) were vacuum packaged or packaged in modified atmospheres containing 80% O(2)/20% CO(2), 50% CO(2)/50% N(2) or 100% CO(2), and stored at 5 or 0 °C. They were examined microbiologically at 7 day intervals for total counts obtained under (1) aerobic, (2) CO(2) enriched or (3) anaerobic conditions; B. thermosphacta; pseudomonad and Enterobacteriaceae counts.

Physical characteristics of lamb primals packaged under vacuum or modified atmospheres.

Lamb primals (shoulders) were packaged under vacuum, 80% O(2)/20% CO(2), 50% CO(2)/50% N(2) or 100% CO(2) and stored at 5 or 0 °C. Pack contents were examined at 7 day intervals to determine the composition of the pack atmosphere, drip loss, colour (muscle and fat) and pH (surface and internal). The composition of the gas atmospheres changed very little during storage.

Very fast chilling of beef and tenderness-a report from an EU concerted action.

Very Fast Chilling (VFC) in Beef is a European Union funded concerted action begun in November 1994. Scientists from the Union have met several times to review their work. Muscle is defined as VFC when it is chilled to -1 °C by 5h post mortem.

The effect of boning and plant cleaning on the contamination of beef cuts in a commercial boning hall.

A series of experiments was carried out to determine the effect of boning and trimming on the bacteriology of a number of beef cuts. At the same time the plant cleaning programme was investigated to determine its efficiency in reducing bacterial numbers on different surfaces within the boning hall. The hygiene of the personnel involved in boning was also studied.

Reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatographic determination of dexamethasone in bovine tissues.

A sensitive and selective high-performance liquid chromatographic procedure is described for the determination of the synthetic corticosteroid dexamethasone (DXM), in bovine muscle, kidney, liver and fat tissues, using methylprednisolone as the internal standard. Following extraction with ethyl acetate (muscle, kidney and liver) or diethyl ether (fat) and clean-up of the tissue extract, the drug residue was isolated using a C18 solid-phase extraction column. Separation of DXM was achieved by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography with ultraviolet detection at 254 nm.

The ultra-rapid chilling of lamb carcasses.

Experiments were carried out on the effects of chilling lamb carcasses very rapidly in a pre-rigor condition. The chilling regime which was finally used was to cool the carcasses at an ambient temperature of -20°C and an air speed of 1·5 m/s for 3·5 h. Examination of striploins from carcasses subjected to this chilling regime showed that, after 7 day's storage, the meat was as tender as that from carcasses which had been conventionally chilled at 4°C for 24 h There were significant reductions in weight loss as a result of ultra rapid chilling, compared to conventionally chilled carcasses.