Impact of packaging methods on meat preservation

PURPOSE OF PACKAGING FRESH AND PROCESSED MEAT

The purpose of packaging is primarily to protect foodstuffs during the distribution process,
including storage and transport, from contamination by dirt, micro-organisms, moulds,
yeasts, parasites, toxic substances or those influences affecting smell and taste or causing
loss of moisture. Packaging should help to prevent spoilage, weight losses and enhance
customer acceptability.

Simple packaging without further treatments is less effective in prolonging the shelf-life of
meat and meat products. Frequently full advantage of packaging can only be achieved in
combination with preservation methods.

FACTORS AFFECTING THE SHELF-LIFE OF MEAT AND MEAT PRODUCTS

Though meat handling, storage and consumption may differ from one place to another, the
factors limiting the shelf-life of these products are the same.

There are endogenous factors, such as:

 pH-value or the degree of acidity of the product.

 aw value or the amount of moisture available in the product.
 oxygen (from the air);
 micro-organisms;
 temperature;
 light; and
 evaporation and desiccation.

COMBINED EFFECT OF PH- AND Aw-VALUE

Generally speaking the shelf-life of meat and meat products will be longer the lower the pH-
value and/or aw-value. Both factors (either pH or aw alone or the two together) have a
decisive influence on the growth of micro-organisms in food. However, there are limits for
most meat products regarding decreased pH-value and aw-value, particularly for
organoleptic reasons. Except for some special products, consumers do not want meat
products to be excessively acidic or dry.

Uncanned meat products can be classified into three storage groups according to their pH
and aw. Each group requires different storage conditions.

Highly perishable meat products have a pH-value above 5.2 and an aw-value above 0.95;
refrigeration at or below +5°C is needed. These are raw fresh meat (without additives),
bologna-type sausages, cooked sausages and cooked ham.
Perishable meat products have a pH-value below 5.2 or an aw-value below 0.95.
Refrigeration at or below +10°C is needed to keep them stable. Products such as meat or
poultry pieces in vinegar jelly (acid) and semi-dry sausages or hams belong to this group.

Shelf-stable products have a pH-value of or below 5.2 and an aw-value of or below 0.95, or
only a pH-value below 5.0, or only an aw-value below 0.91. No refrigeration is required in
these cases, the products remaining stable under ambient temperatures. The most common
products in this group are the various kinds of dried meat.

Under the above conditions no microbial growth in meat and meat products will occur.
However, this does not mean that the products remain stable for an undetermined period.
Their shelf-life will be limited by chemical or physical deterioration, by rancidity and
discoloration. In this situation the product quality will benefit from the application of suitable
packaging materials, which reduce the physical and chemical influences on the product or
protect the product completely. The following noxious influences may occur.

Oxygen

The oxygen content in the air is about 20 percent. If oxygen affects meat and meat products
during prolonged storage periods, it will change the red colour into grey or green and cause
oxidation and rancidity of fats with undesirable off-flavours.

The foils used for food packaging differ in their permeability to oxygen. The lower the oxygen
permeability of the packaging material, the more efficient will be the protection of product
quality. The best protection will be achieved using oxygen-proof packaging films together
with vacuum packaging of the product. This ensures that practically no oxygen is left in the
package and no oxygen will penetrate from the air into the product.

Light

The prolonged exposure of meat and meat products to daylight or artificial light accelerates
oxidation and rancidity because light provides the energy for these processes.

Transparent packaging films give no protection against light influences. Therefore, for
products under strong light exposure, coloured or opaque films should be preferred. Films
laminated with aluminium foil are absolutely impermeable to light. Products in transparent
packaging film are sufficiently protected when kept in the dark or under moderate
illumination.

Evaporation

Fresh foods with a relatively high moisture content such as meat, fresh sausages, cooked
ham, etc. will have considerable losses of weight and quality by evaporation during storage
if they are not packed. The packaging material must therefore be sufficiently vapour-proof.
Most plastic films used for food packaging comply with this requirement.
SECONDARY CONTAMINATION

During slaughtering, carcass dressing, meat cutting and/or processing, the contamination
of meat to some extent cannot be avoided. The further growth of micro-organisms in meat
and meat products cannot be stopped through packaging only. However, secondary
contamination of these foods, for example by contact with dust, dirty surfaces and hands,
can definitely be prevented through proper packaging, preferably with plastic films which
are absolutely impervious to agents causing secondary contamination.

SUITABLE MATERIALS AND EQUIPMENT FOR PACKAGING MEAT AND MEAT PRODUCTS

Packaging films can be subdivided into cellulose films, plastic films and aluminium foil. They
can either be used as monofilms or as two or more different films laminated together. These
materials differ in:

 oxygen permeability;
 water vapour barrier;
 resistance to hot and cold temperatures; and
 mechanical strength.

Nearly all available films are of thermoplastic materials, and therefore heat sealable,
resulting in hermetically sealed plastic pouches, bags, etc.

A high oxygen barrier is important in the application of films for packaging meat and meat
products. Films made of polyvinylchloride (PVC), polyethylene (PE) or polypropylene (PP)
have a relatively high oxygen permeability, whereas polyvinylidenchloride (PVDC),
polyester (PETP), polyamide (PA) and cellulose film (ZG) are less or almost non-permeable
to oxygen. The latter materials are therefore better suited for packaging meat and meat
products. However, the materials of the first group are frequently used as laminates with
materials of the second group in order to achieve special effects regarding mechanical
strength, heat sealing properties or making the package practically impermeable to both
oxygen and water vapour.

For the efficient utilization of these materials, air must be drawn out completely from the
packages with the meat product (“vacuum-packaging”) and the package should be
hermetically closed by heat sealing or metal clip. Vacuum-packaging will inhibit the growth
of yeasts, moulds, and most aerobic bacteria under refrigeration temperatures. However,
facultative anaerobes such as acid-producing bacteria grow freely under adequate aw-
conditions. These micro-organisms do not threaten the health of consumers but may affect
the quality of the products by negatively influencing colour and taste. Therefore efforts
should be made to keep the initial number of bacteria low, which can be obtained by simple
hygienic measures during cutting and packaging, such as frequent handwashing, clean
tools and clean tables.

The above general considerations refer to vacuum-packaged meat and meat products with
a high moisture content. All these products are shelf-stable because of their low water
 activity and therefore do not require refrigeration. They are partly dried in the sun, or others
are dried and smoked over a wood fire.

The Shelf Life of Meats .

When you buy fresh, ground beef, you don’t have long to cook it, as it has to be consumed within 2 days of purch
be kept in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Freeze it: To extend the shelf life, freeze any type of beef in a tightly sealed container. Ground beef can be used w
Cook it: From a rich Bolognese to a saucy stew, if you like to make big-batch meals with beef, they can be cooked
Just make sure to transfer any hot food into small, shallow containers to ensure it cools quickly, which prevents ba
Pork
It’s hard to grocery shop without picking up a package of the ever-beloved bacon and luckily, you have a full week
however, they should both be cooked within 2 days of purchasing. Other cuts of pork, such as chops, can be cons
Freeze it: Freeze any pork in a tightly sealed container. Bacon will keep for up to a month, fresh sausages and po
Cook it: Cooked pork of any kind can be safely stored in the fridge for 3 to 4 days and the freezer for up to 3 mont
Poultry
Poultry is a great staple for delicious and affordable meals. From chicken to turkey and quail, all fresh poultry sho
Freeze it: Freeze any poultry in a tightly sealed container. Individual cuts, such as breasts or thighs, can be used
Cook it: Cooked poultry can be safely stored in the fridge for 4 days and the freezer for up to 4 months.
Lunch Meats
Your sandwich meats should be consumed within 4 days of purchasing. If you’re looking for something that will la
kept in the fridge for up to 3 weeks.
Freeze it: Freeze any lunch meats in a tightly sealed container for up to 2 months.
Post-Mortem Changes
The post-mortem changes that take place when muscle is converted into meat have a marked effect on the quality of the meat
After slaughter the glycogen in the muscle is converted into lactic acid causing a fall in pH from an initial value of pH 6.8 - 7
when they are roughly handled or fight one another the muscle glycogen is released into the blood stream and, after slaughter
acidity causes a partial breakdown of muscle structure which results in pale, soft and exudative meat (termed PSE) - a condit
important in certain types of meat processing.
Long-term stress before slaughter or starvation uses up the glycogen so that less lactic acid is formed after slaughter resulting
instead of a bright red colour. This is termed dark, firm and dry (DFD) in the case of pigs and "dark cutting" in beef. The con
quickly since the low acidity favours rapid bacterial growth.
PSE and DFD meat are perfectly safe to eat but limited in their processing capacity. PSE meat has higher drip and cooking lo
has less flavour than usual.
DFD meat has normal or increased WBC and so is suitable for scalded/boiled sausages and other cooked products but it has p
meats can be blended with normal meat for the preparation of products of good quality.
After slaughter as the glycogen in the tissues is exhausted rigor mortis sets in and the whole carcass become stiff. This is due
inwards between the myosin filaments so shortening the myofibrils.
If the meat is cooked when the muscles are still in rigor it is extremely tough. This condition is prevented by "aging" or "ripe
recover their extensibility and become more tender through partial enzymatic breakdown of the muscles fibres. At this stage
Rigor is completed in cattle after 12-24 hours and is resolved by periods that depend on the temperature:- 10-13 days at 0°C,
pork as beef or lamb: it is faster in young animals and slower in "red muscles. that function slowly and continuously in the liv
Obviously if meat has to be sold within a few hours of slaughter it is still in pre-rigor or rigor, and the tough meat has to be co
If lamb, and to a lesser extent beef, are chilled too rapidly after slaughter the muscles may undergo extreme contraction or "c
this way. Cold shortening does not take place when the carcass is cooled more slowly - the temperature must not fall below 1
for some hours to accelerate rigor and then rapidly chilled or frozen - a process called "conditioning".
Old animals, especially old draught animals, have a high content of tough connective tissue in the muscle and prolonged cook
a fact not always known to consumers.
So it is clear that in many areas conditions militate against good quality meat long transport of animals and poor lairage facili
temperature and lack of refrigeration during and after slaughter lead to heavy contamination and growth of microorganisms a
aggravated by inadequate care of the meat during transport and in the market.
Obviously there is room for improvement in conditions of meat production even for purely local consumption to reduce losse
essential to adopt the sophisticated techniques and methods of refrigeration that are now expected in national and internationa
 Meat Tenderization

Tenderness is a quality of meat gauging how easily it is chewed or cut. Tenderness is a

desirable quality, as tender meat is softer, easier to chew, and generally
more palatable than harder meat. Consequently, tender cuts of meat typically command
higher prices. The tenderness depends on a number of factors including the meat grain,
the amount of connective tissue, and the amount of fat.[1] Tenderness can be increased
by a number of processing techniques, generally referred to
as tenderizing or tenderization.

Tenderness is perhaps the most important of all factors impacting meat eating quality,
with others being flavor, juiciness, and succulence.[2]
Tenderness is a quality complex to obtain and gauge, and it depends on a number of
factors. On the basic level, these factors are meat grain, the amount and composition of
connective tissue, and the amount of fat.In order to obtain a tender meat, there is a
complex interplay between the animal's pasture, age, species, breed, protein intake,
calcium status, stress before and at killing, and how the meat is treated after slaughter.

Meat with the fat content deposited within the steak to create a marbled appearance
has always been regarded as more tender than steaks where the fat is in a separate
layer.Cooking causes melting of the fat, spreading it throughout the meat and
increasing the tenderness of the final product.
Techniques for breaking down collagens in meat to make it more palatable and tender
are referred to as tenderizing or tenderization.
There are a number of ways to tenderize meat:

 Mechanical tenderization, such as pounding, or piercing.

 The tenderization that occurs through cooking, such as braising.
 Tenderizers in the form of naturally occurring enzymes, which can be added to food before
cooking.
o Examples of enzymes used for
tenderizing: papain from papaya, bromelain from pineapple and actinidin from kiwifruit.
 Marinating the meat with vinegar, wine, lemon juice, buttermilk or yogurt.
 Brining the meat in a salt solution (brine).
 Dry aging of meat at 0 to 2 °C (32 to 36 °F).
 Velveting
 Sodium bicarbonate
  Meat Quality
 Meat quality is normally defined by the compositional quality (lean to fat ratio) and the
palatability factors such as visual appearance, smell, firmness, juiciness, tenderness, and
flavour. The nutritional quality of meat is objective yet "eating" quality, as perceived by the
consumer, is highly subjective.
 Visual Identification
 The visual identification of quality meat is based on colour, marbling and waterholding
capacity. Marbling is small streaks of fat that are found within the muscle and can be seen in
the meat cut. Marbling has a beneficial effect on juiciness and flavour of meat. Meat should
have a normal colour that is uniform throughout the entire cut. Beef, lamb, and pork should
also have marbling throughout the meat.
 Smell
 Another quality factor is smell. The product should have a normal smell. This will be
different for each of the species (i.e. beef, pork, chicken), but should vary only slightly within
the species. Any rancid or strange smelling meat should be avoided.
 Firmness
 Meat should appear firm rather than soft. When handling the retail package, it should be
firm, but not tough. It should give under pressure, but not actually be soft.
 Juiciness
 Juiciness depends on the amount of water retained in a cooked meat product. Juiciness
increases flavour, helps soften meat - making it easier to chew, and stimulates saliva
production in the mouth. Water retention and lipid content determine juiciness. Marbling and
fat around edges helps hold in water. Water losses are from evaporation and drip losses.
Meat aging can increase water retention and therefore increases juiciness.
 Tenderness
 Has been linked to several factors, such as the animal's age, sex or the muscle
location. One important way to tenderize meat is by aging. Carcasses are aged by holding
them at refrigeration temperatures for extended periods of time after slaughter and initial
chilling.
 Flavour
 Flavour and aroma are intertwined to create the sensation the consumer has during
eating. These perceptions rely on the smell through the nose and on the sensations of salty,
sweet, sour and bitter on the tongue. Meat flavour is affected by type of species, diet,
cooking method and method of preservation (e.g. smoked or cured).

Slaughter house and it's features

Slaughtering equipment, particularly for smaller-scale operations, need not be elaborate

and expensive. The amount of equipment will depend on the slaughtering procedures
employed. If possible, all equipment should be made of stainless steel or plastic, be rust
resistant and easily cleaned and sanitized. Equipment which does not get in contact
with the meat (e.g. overhead rails, working platforms, knocking pen) is usually made of
galvanized steel.
Basic equipment needed for the slaughtering operation:

 stunning gun, electrical head tongs or simple stunning equipment for direct blow
 knives:
sticking - 15 cm sharpened on both sides
skinning - 15 cm curved
 a sharpening steel
 oil or water sharpening stone
 scabbard and belt for holding knives
 meat saw - hand or electric and cleaver
 block and tackle or chain hoist strong enough to hold the weight of the animal to be
slaughtered
 pritch, chocks or skinning rack (dressing cradle)
 a strong beam, tripod or track 2.4 to 3.4 m from floor
 spreader - gambrel or metal pipe
 several buckets
 working platforms
 scalding barrel or tank
 pot, barrel or system for boiling water
 bell scrapers
 solid scraping table or platform
 thermometer registering up to 70°C
 hog or hay hook
 torch or flame for singeing

The last seven items indicate additional equipment required when hogs are scalded and
scraped rather than skinned.

Useful additional equipment:

 knocking pen
 bleeding hooks (for vertical bleeding)
 blood-catching trough
 wash trough (tripe) Sanitation of hands and tools:
 hand wash-basin
 implement sterilizers

Means should be available to clean thoroughly all equipment coming into contact with
carcasses or meat. Implement sterilizers are stainless-steel boxes holding hot (82°C)
water, shaped to suit particular equipment knives, cleavers, saws, etc.Knife sterilizers
should be placed in positions where every operator who uses a knife has immediate
access. Handles as well as blades must be sterilized. Each operator should have at
least two knives etc., one to use while the other sterilizes .

Failure to sterilize all knives and equipment regularly will result in carcass
contamination. Bacteria will be transferred from the hide to the carcass and from
carcass to carcass .