Impact of Aging Methods and Frozen Storage on Beef Quality Attributes from Different Finishing Diets

• Published in: Meat and muscle biology 2024-06, Vol.8 (1)
• Main Authors: Carlos Alvarez, Daniela Correa, Guillermo de Souza, Gustavo Brito, Marcia del Campo, Maria Font i-Furnols, Santiago Luzardo
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: beef; dry aging bag; finishing diet; meat preservation; quality attributes
• ISSN: 2575-985X
• DOI: 10.22175/mmb.17695

The effects of finishing diet (pasture or grain) and meat preservation method on beef's physicochemical, micro- biological, and sensory attributes were evaluated. The preservation methods assessed were dry aging in bag (DAb) and wet aging (WA) for 40 d, and then frozen storage (Fr) ([DAb + Fr] and [WA + Fr]) for 180 d. Sixty striploins (Longissimus lumborum) from British breed steers (n = 15 from pasture and n = 15 from grain-based diet) were used. Lightness (L*) was only affected by finishing diet where meat from grain-fed steers was lighter than those fed on pasture (P < 0.01). DAb meat had higher pH (P < 0.01) and lower cooking losses (P < 0.01) than WA. DAb + Fr had the highest Psychotrophic bacteria counts compared to WA + Fr, DAb and WA (P < 0.01). DAb and DAb + Fr increased Enterobacteriaceae bacteria counts (P < 0.01) compared to WA and WA + Fr. DAb + Fr samples had the lowest L*, a*, and b* values. No interaction between physicochemical characteristics (color coordinates, pH, cooking losses, and shear force) and surface microbiological load was observed (P > 0.05). Greater polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), PUFA n-3, conjugated linoleic acid (c9, t11 - 18:2) (P < 0.01), and PUFA/saturated fatty acid ratio (P < 0.05) and lower n-6:n-3 ratio (P < 0.01) were observed in pasture- than grain-fed steers. The consumer sensory panel showed acceptable scores for all treatments, although some differences between attributes were detected by cluster analysis. Different aging methods followed by a frozen storage period could be used to produce and export meat with the required quality attributes to meet consumer expectations