Microbial quality, meat, indicator

Of the biogenic amines produced on the decarboxylation of amino acids (cf. 10.2.8.3), histamine, tyramine, putrescine and cadaverine have been identified in beef and pork. Since these substances are microbial metabolic products, they were the proposed indicators of microbial quality and were listed in the biogenic amine index (BAI = concentration of the four amines in mg/kg). A BAI value of <5 indicates clean meat, 5-20... 

Biogenic amines can be found in processed meat products as a consequence of microbial activity related to the fermentation involved in their processing, but amines can be also found in poor-quality raw materials as a consequence of microbial contamination. Therefore the BA content in cooked meat (not fermented) products might serve as a useful indicator of the hygienic quality of the meat employed for its elaboration. However, this relationship for ripened meat products is rather complex, since the ability to produce BAs of the fermentative microflora need to be well known before limits can be set. According to the few studies performed on BAs in meat products,... 

It is important to note that in these studies of vitamin E supplementation, it is the stability of oxymyoglobin that is improved. There does not appear to be any effect of vitamin E supplementation on the absolute concentration of myoglobin. In addition, consumers often associate discolored meat with a high microbial load. While meat color is not necessarily an adequate indicator of bacteriological quality (Faustman et al., 1990), Arnold et al. (1992a) have shown that bacterial growth on meat from vitamin E supplemented cattle is similar to that of meat from control animals. Thus, while the color stability of vitamin E supplemented beef may be improved, microbial growth is unaffected. The question of whether such enhanced color stability masks a natural deteriorative process must be addressed and requires further research. 

Another indicator of the vitahty of this scientific topic is the number of reviews that has flourished over the last years no less than 23 reviews have been pubhshed since 2007 Most deal with hyperspectral (HS) techniques for food and agrofood quality and safety inspection [4-18] and, except for Kim et al. [14], who focus on shortwave NIR and visible, they generally include not only NIR HS vision but also visible, Raman, and fluorescence imaging. Others focus on one type of commodity, such as fruit [19-21], meat [6], hams [22], wine wastes [23], or one specific issue such as fecal and microbial contamination [24]. 

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