Development of product quenelles from tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) aiming for the fast-food market

• Grant number: 09/02126-6
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: October 01, 2009
• End date: January 31, 2012
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Food Science and Technology - Food Technology
• Principal Investigator: Marília Oetterer
• Grantee: Marília Oetterer
• Host Institution: Escola Superior de Agricultura Luiz de Queiroz (ESALQ). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Piracicaba , SP, Brazil

Abstract

One third of fish caught in the world is not used for direct consumption as food, being used as animal feed or wasted. The ideal would be to use the raw material thoroughly and recover its by-products, avoiding the formation of the residue (ARRUDA, 2004). Additionally, the high nutritional value, especially protein, and the low cost of this waste are factors that should be considered by the food industry to develop new products. This use can be in the form of minced fish, which can achieve higher prices among recycled products; be useful in countries with problems of malnutrition and generate other nutritious products, convenient and at low cost, which can stimulate the consumption of fish products. However, due to the way these wastes are being handled, they end up degrading rapidly by bacterial action, limiting the possibilities for their use in products development; therefore it is necessary to standardize their use, from the catch press stage up to the final product available to the consumer. The pharmaceutical, animal feed and fashion industries have also found a spot in this niche. They may use this waste to develop high quality products and of great ecological appeal.This study aims to promote the proper management of by-products processing of Nile tilapia from the establishment of cultivation to be standardized as a model of total quality in fish farming. The aim is to standardize the collection of by-products for the processing industry and therefore minimize environmental problems resulting from waste of fish. They will be produced from the waste material of headed and gutted fish, by-products and quenelles minced fish. The standardization for obtaining products will be made as to the quantification and characterization of operations generating the raw material: physic-chemical, microbiological and sensorial characteristics. The test results will be used to formulate a mathematical equation that will enable the standardization of all operations involved in obtaining by-products. (AU)