Shelf life estimation of refrigerated vacuum packed beef accounting for uncertainty

Author(s)

Rodriguez-Caturla, Magdevis Y. ; Garre, Alberto ; Castillo, Carmen Josefina Contreras ; Zwietering, Marcel H. ; den Besten, Heidy M. W. ; St Ana, Anderson S.

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: International Journal of Food Microbiology; v. 405, p. 13-pg., 2023-11-16.

Abstract

This study estimates the shelf life of vacuum packed beef meat (three muscles: striploin (longissimus thoracis et lumborum, LTL), tenderloin (psoas major, PM) and outside chuck (trapezius thoracis, TT)) at refrigeration tem-peratures (0 degrees C-10 degrees C) based on modelling the growth of two relevant groups of spoilage microorganisms: lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and Enterobacteriaceae. The growth models were developed combining a two-step and a one-step approach. The primary modelling was used to identify the parameters affecting the growth kinetics, guiding the definition of secondary growth models. For LAB, the secondary model included the effect of temperature and initial pH on the specific growth rate. On the other hand, the model for Enterobacteriaceae incorporated the effect of temperature on the specific growth rate and the lag phase; as well as the effect of the initial pH on the specific growth rate, the lag phase and the initial microbial count. We did not observe any significant effect of the type of muscle on the growth kinetics. Once the equations were defined, the models were fitted to the complete dataset using a one-step approach. Model validation was carried out by cross-validation, mitigating the impact of an arbitrary division between training and validation sets. The models were used to estimate the shelf life of the product, based on the maximum admissible microbial concentration (7 log CFU/g for LAB, 5 log CFU/g for Enterobacteriaceae). Although LAB was the dominant microbiota, in several cases, both LAB and Enterobacteri-aceae reached the critical concentration practically at the same time. Furthermore, in some scenarios, the end of shelf life would be determined by Enterobacteriaceae, pointing at the potential importance of non-dominant microorganisms for product spoilage. These results can aid in the implementation of effective control mea-sures in the meat processing industry. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 17/26667-2 - Beef quality in Bos indicus cattle: biological markers for meat attributes in different ultimate pH ranges
• Grantee: Carmen Josefina Contreras Castillo
• Support Opportunities: Research Projects - Thematic Grants
• FAPESP's process: 14/25028-8 - Use of predictive microbiology, metagenomic and metabolomic tools in the study of microbial ecology of vacuum-packaged beef during shelf-life
• Grantee: Magdevis Yanet Rodríguez Caturla
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• FAPESP's process: 19/20287-9 - Study of spoilage microbiota and shelf-life of primary cuts of meat by metagenomic and predictive modeling tools
• Grantee: Magdevis Yanet Rodríguez Caturla
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• FAPESP's process: 17/03902-6 - Studying the behaviour of spoilage microbiota on vacuum-packed beef shelf-life as a function of temperature and pH by using predictive modelling, metabolomic and metagenomic tools
• Grantee: Magdevis Yanet Rodríguez Caturla
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Post-doctor