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Insight Insider Research and Development: Preserving Color in Ready-To-Eat Meats Sometimes pink color forms in uncured cooked meat products. For example, cooked beef can become contaminated with nitrite by contact with a cured product, incomplete cleaning of utensils used with cured products or water contaminated with nitrites. This contamination can develop cured meat color on cooked beef. By Donna Berry C onsumers often perceive handprepared and packaged sandwiches, salads, wraps and other meals as being fresher, simpler, less processed, or even homemade. The truth is, just like most commercially prepared and packaged foods, commissary-produced foods rely on preservation systems to ensure product integrity and safety through shelf life. First and foremost, it is necessary that meats used to build sandwiches or are included in packaged salads maintain color appeal, as humans are visually oriented. They eat with their eyes. "What we see directly impacts our expectations about the taste of that product," says Herbert Stone, spokesperson and past-president, Institute of Food Technologists, Chicago, and an authority on sensory science based in Menlo Park, California. "When consumers shop, their choices are impacted by how the product appears." Faded roast beef, grayish ham and pink grilled chicken do not sell. These discolorations can occur as a result of surface myoglobin oxidation and result in product discard even though safe to eat. "Fortunately, the color of meat can be controlled," says Jane Boles, associate professor of meat science, Montana State University, Bozeman, Montana. This control comes in the form of proper handling, preparation, packaging and added ingredients. "Myoglobin is a water-soluble protein that contains iron, with the state of the iron atom influencing meat color," says Dr. Boles. "During the cooking process, myoglobin is denatured, resulting in 6 * NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2015 * the brownish color easily recognized in cooked meat products." In some ready-to-eat meats, such as sliced roast beef, the myoglobin is not completely denatured. Care must be taken to prevent oxidation, as the consumer expects some red. With cured meats such as ham, added nitrites assist with color development. These are either added directly via curing salts or indirectly through "natural" ingredients such as celery powder, which contain inherent high concentrations. When nitrite meets water, it forms nitrous acid and nitric oxide. "In meat, these compounds combine with the protein myoglobin to form nitric oxide myoglobin," says Dr. Boles. "This pigment is not stable until after cooking when the final cured pigment, nitrosylhemochrome, is formed. The cooked pigment is more stable, but is still sensitive to oxygen, temperature and light. This is why most cured products are vacuum packaged. "Many problems can occur in the curing of meat products that can result in the development of strange colors," says Dr. Boles. "One of the most common is the oxidation of the pigment to form a green or grey color." This can be caused by metal contamination, such as that encountered in slicers and knives containing copper or iron. commissary INSIDER "A pink color can also be formed in slow-cooked meat products that have not been contaminated with nitrite," says Dr. Boles. "It is caused by specific conditions that promote interaction of natural meat pigments and nitrogen containing constituents of meat." Such surface pinking, also termed "pink ring" can occur if gas ovens or barbecue grills are used to cook meat products. "Incomplete burning of the gas or contaminates in the gas result in the formation of nitrogen dioxide and nitric oxide, with the latter producing a pink color," says Dr. Boles. Iridescence is another type of color defect, one quite common in sliced roast beef and ham products. "The dominant color is frequently green and consumers sometimes confuse this with green myoglobin pigments associated with microbial growth," says Dr. Boles. "Iridescence is produced by a combination of the angle of incidence of light on the muscle fibers and the wetness of the surface. If the fibers are pulled

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of instore - Nov + Dec 2015

instore - Nov + Dec 2015
Editor's Note - Channel Blurring
What's Ahead
Table of Contents
News - On Our Radar
Shopper Demographics - Cookies
Deli Prepared Foods
Smaller Households
Commissary Insider - Insight Insider
Preserving Color in Ready-To-Eat Meats
Big Gains for Ancient Grains
Proactive Defense
Deli & Cheese Slicers
Metal Detection
Deli Trends - Clean Eating
Adapting to Change - Foodservice Trends
Growing Movement - Free-form category explodes
Specialty in the Bakery - Artisan bread displays
Be Competitive - Lunchtime
Product Spotlight - Cookies, candies & sweets
Specialty Cheese - Pizza cheeses
Product Trends - First to Market
Product Showcase
Next Up/Ad Index

instore - Nov + Dec 2015