The study of "muscle eye" in bulls of Ukrainian black-spotted dairy-meat breed as a factor in improving the properties of meat products

The impact of age, live weight, and growth rate of the bulls of Ukrainian breeds on the area of “muscle eye” (cross-section of m. longissimus dorsi when the carcass is divided into front and rear between the 12th and 13th ribs) was studied. The correlation between the size of the “muscle eye” and the carcass's characteristics and the meat's qualitative indicators was also determined. The research was conducted on the bulls of Ukrainian black-and-white dairy (UBWDB) and Ukrainian meat (UMB) breeds. Living animals “muscle eye” area was determined with the ultrasonic analyser Emperor 860, after slaughter. It was found that UMB bulls have the area of “muscle eye” twice as big as their UBWDB peers. The “muscle eye” area increases when growing the cattle to 400 – 450 kg. In the future, it will be practically independent of the age and weight of the animals and remains stable. An increase in the average daily gains within the breed leads to an increase in the “muscle eye” area. The area of “muscle eye” has a weak negative connection (r = -0.193) with meat tenderness and dry matter content (r = -0.345) and a positive one with slaughter weight (r = 0.614) and slaughter yield (r = 0.653). Of the three parameters (length, depth, and area) of “muscle eye”, the greatest impact on the technological properties of meat has depth. Its increase has a negative connection with meat tenderness (r = -0.810) and moisture (r = -0.474), but it has a positive impact on the moisture retention capacity (r = 0.338) and weight of weighed portion after heat treatment. The obtained results can be used to clarify the optimal growing parameters of the bulls of Ukrainian black-and-white dairy and meat breeds for meat and determine the optimal age and live weight of the cattle slaughter.

The effect of vibration massage on the salting process of ostrich meat

Existing massagers are characterized by relatively high energy consumption during operation, the metal consumption of the structure, complexity of the drive mechanism. Therefore, the search for effective implementation schemes of mixing operations and uniform structure formation of viscous and elastic-plastic raw materials, in particular, minced meat, subject to increased contact interaction while minimizing the force on the products, is relevant to the conducted research. The purpose of this work is to substantiate the technological preparation modes of the given minced meat with the use of a developed vibrating massager, as well as to determine the kinematic parameters of the oscillation system and graphic-analytical analysis of their change. The experimental model of the vibrating massager with an eccentric drive mechanism, a measuring evaluation base of rheological characteristics of the minced ostrich meat, and kinematic parameters of the vibrating drive of the massager, in particular, amplitude-frequency and speed characteristics were developed to carry out the specified tasks. High technological results were obtained when using the forced eccentric drive of the massager, which is characterized by a minimum mass of the oscillation masses of the parts compared to traditional unbalanced vibrators, which allow reducing 2 - 2.5 times the energy consumption to drive the vibrating massager under study. The practical value of the conducted work includes the use of the eccentric forced vibrating exciter for obtaining the force control over the minced meat to be formed, which reduces the oscillation masses of the drive and minimizes the energy consumption for the process, accordingly; it has the simplest structure among the mechanical vibrators, significantly reduces the dynamic loads on the supporting units of the vibrator as well as provides a sufficiently high contact interaction for both the vibration impact and the processing intensity in general.

A multiplicative approach to optimize the consumer properties of quick-frozen semifinished products from cultivated champignons

It is possible to maximise the consumer properties of grown fruit and vegetable products, significantly reduce their losses during the life cycle, and satisfy the public demand for products ready for consumption by using different preservation methods, particularly freezing. It has been found that the freezing of mushrooms without pretreatment does not provide a high-quality finished product. It justifies the expediency of mushroom pretreatment before freezing to stabilize their consumer properties. The inhibition effect of high temperatures on the oxidoreductase activity has been confirmed, ensuring the high preservation of cultivated champignons' natural color and consistency. A quasimetric assessment of the quality of quick-frozen cultivated mushrooms was performed, and the optimal heat treatment parameters were determined. Before freezing, blanched mushrooms' efficiency with polysaccharides has been scientifically proved. Rational concentrations and types of polysaccharides for mushroom processing have been determined. It has been established that blanching champignons in 0.1% citric acid solution followed by xanthan gum (0.2%), guar gum (0.1%), and lamidan (0.1%) processing ensure stability of consumer properties of quick-frozen semifinished products made of cultured champignons. After defrosting, they have an attractive appearance, natural light brown colour, elastic consistency, well-expressed mushroom flavour, and harmonious taste.

Quality changes of sous-vide cooked and blue light sterilized Argentine squid (Illex argentinus)

The present work was carried out to investigate the quality changes and shelf life of blue light (Blu-ray) irradiated sous-vide cooked (SVC) Argentine squid (Illex argentinus) during storage at 0, 5, and 10 °C. Sensory evaluation, color, shear force, lipid oxidation levels, total viable counts (TVC), and psychrophilic bacterial count were used to study the changes in storage quality of SVC squid at different temperatures. Results showed that the high-quality endpoints of Blu-ray irradiated Argentine squid were 360, 144, and 72 h, and the shelf-life endpoints were 504, 240, and 120 h during storage at 0, 5, and 10 ℃, respectively. The redness values of irradiated squid did not differ significantly (p >0.05) during the storage, the brightness and yellowness values of irradiated squid showed an increasing trend, and the sheer force initially increased and then decreased. The thiobarbituric acid reactive substance of each squid stored at low temperature increased with the extension of the storage period, indicating that they exhibited fat oxidation with the extension of the storage period. The TVC and the number of Psychrobacter species increased with the storage period. The correlation analysis suggested that TVC and Psychrobacter count as indicators of quality changes in Argentine squid during low-temperature storage were in good agreement with sensory scores (R2 >0.9). Additionally, our results showed that Blu-ray sterilization played a positive role by inducing photosensitive oxidation and decreasing TVC and the total number of Psychrobacter than the control group during storage of SVC squid after Blu-ray irradiation. This study provides a theoretical basis for applying Blu-ray sterilization in aquatic product processing.

The use of secondary fish raw materials from silver carp in the technology of structuring agents

The expediency and prospects of using secondary fish raw materials from silver carp in the structuring agents technology have been substantiated. The combination of secondary fish raw materials and seaweed with different mechanisms of gelation has a targeted effect on the organoleptic, structural-mechanical, and physicochemical properties of food products. Accordingly, the expediency of adding the Black Sea alga cystoseira (2%) to optimize the mineral composition of the structuring agents and increase their jelly-making properties was established. Using experimental studies and multicriteria optimization, the optimal ratio of secondary fish raw materials – 40%; water – 60% and rational heat treatment – 150 min, at a temperature of 85 – 100 °C has been determined. An analysis and comparison of various preservation methods have confirmed the expediency of using the freeze-drying method of drying fish broths for the production of structuring agents, which allows to preserve of the original properties of the product, biologically active substances, reduce the mass of the dried product and increase the shelf life of the structuring agents. The optimal storage conditions have been determined – the ready-made structuring agents were packed in three-layer paper kraft bags and stored in a cool dry place at a temperature of 22 ±2 °C and relative humidity of no more than 70% for 12 months. It was found that the physical and chemical indicators of the structuring agents depend on the features of the structure, amino acid composition of fish collagen. The presence of the overwhelming number of high-molecular-weight molecules in the composition of the structuring agents and the preservation of the native structure determine high indicators of dynamic viscosity, dissolution time, and strength. As a result of the research, it was revealed that the high protein content largely depends on the amount of collagen in the secondary fish raw material, which has a positive effect on the gelling properties of the product being created.