Update Fresh Meat Packaging in Low CO Atmospheres

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Update - Fresh Meat Packaging in Low CO
Atmospheres

• Daren Cornforth, Ph.D.
• Nutrition Food Sciences
• Utah State University
• Logan, Ut 84322-8700
• Presented at National Meat Assn Processing Tech
  Conf, 3/3/2006, Palace Hotel, San Francisco, CA

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Why Packaging Studies?

• Per capita consumption of ground beef is 34
  lbs/year
• 250 million people x 34 x 1.60/lb 13.6
  billion industry per year in USA.
• 60 of fresh meat sold in case-ready packaging
  (Eilert, 2005).
• Why? To obtain longer shelf life, allowing more
  time for distribution.

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Why Case-Ready?

• To eliminate butcher shops in big box retail
  stores - a huge savings.
• So, meat is packaged in retail packages by the
  meat packer/purveyor.
• Longer shelf life (28-35 days) is needed so meat
  retains fresh red color during distribution and
  retail display.

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Modified Atmospheres Used in Fresh Meat in USA

• 80 oxygen 20 carbon dioxide
• 0.4 carbon monoxide 60 carbon dioxide 39.6
  nitrogen (approved for bulk packages during
  transport, February, 2002, and for retail
  packages in January, 2004.

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Pros/Cons of 80 oxygen MAP

• Advantages
• 10-14 day redness, vs 3-5 days in PVC
• Premature browning during cooking
• Disadvantages
• Premature Browning during cooking
• Oxidized (rancid) flavor
• Bone darkening

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Pros/Cons of 0.4 CO-MAP

• Advantages
• 28 days redness of ground beef, 35 days for
  steaks or roasts.
• No oxidized flavor, no bone darkening
• Disadvantages
• CO safety concerns
• Can spoiled meat appear fresh?
• Persistent pinking after cooking?

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Acceptability of Ground Beef in 80 02 (Jayasingh
et al, 2002).
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Solutions to 80 oxygen MAP problems - Add
antioxidants, or use alternative packaging methods

• Rosemary extract in soy or canola oil (Kalsec,
  Kalamazoo, MI), injected into roasts or steaks.
• Milk Mineral (dried whey permeate 0.75 of raw
  ground beef (Vissa Cornforth, 2006).
• Alternative Packaging 0.4 CO-MAP

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History of Low CO Packaging of Fresh Meats

• 1985 - First Use in Norway
• 2002 - Pactiv petition approved for 0.4 CO as a
  processing aid during distribution
• 2004 - Due to EU trade restrictions, Norway
  ceased use of low CO packaging
• 2004 - Precept Foods petition approved for 0.4
  CO, 20-80 CO2, 0-80 N2 at retail.
• 2005 - Kalsec petitions FDA to reverse its
  approval of low CO packaging, citing concerns
  that spoiled meat may look fresh.

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With Low CO Packaging,Fresh Meat Has
Characteristics Similar to Milk

• Both highly perishable, requiring refrigeration
• Both have sell-by dating after packaging (milk
  21 d 28 burger 28 d steaks 35 d). For
  meats, the labeling is use or freeze by.
• Spoilage is indicated by odor, not color.

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Hunter color and microbial load of beef top loin
steaks held at 2C Treatment
Week L a b log log APC AnPC________
__________________________________________________
_______0.5CO-MAP 0 35.1 8.8
7.3 0.69 0.480.5CO-MAP 1 37.8 13.2 10.2 2.26 2.
250.5CO-MAP 2 38.3 13.9 11.0 2.67 2.680.5CO-M
AP 3 39.1 13.3 10.6 3.41 3.360.5CO-MAP 4 39.1
13.5 10.8 4.48 3.50.5CO-MAP 5 40.1 13.6 10.9 4.
85 3.920.5CO-MAP 6 39.0 13.2
9.8 5.47 4.840.5CO-MAP 7 37.8 14.4 11.5 5.49 5
.730.5CO-MAP 8 39.0 13.9 11.6 6.64 5.97PVC 0
37.6 11.5 13.3 1.61 1.18PVC 1 33.4
9.8 12.1 3.87 3.74PVC 2 36.4
5.3 10.7 6.09 6.03_______________________________
_______________________________LSD0.05
1.87 1.87 0.89 0.45 0.37
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Hunter color values and microbial load of ground
beef stored at 2C Treatment
Week L a b log log APC AnPC________
__________________________________________________
_______0.5CO-MAP 0 43.3 15.6 13.7 3.98 1.740.5
CO-MAP 1 45.9 16.4 12.9 4.16 2.000.5CO-MAP 2
45.6 16.4 13.4 4.80 4.560.5CO-MAP 3 46.5 17.5 1
4.2 6.06 5.620.5CO-MAP 4 47.3 16.5 14.2 6.66 5.
830.5CO-MAP 5 47.4 16.8 13.4 7.63 6.700.5CO-M
AP 6 45.3 16.5 13.0 7.72 7.560.5CO-MAP
7 45.4 16.1 13.0 8.01 7.930.5CO-MAP 8 47.6 14
.7 13.5 8.27 8.29PVC 0 48.4
8.3 15.3 4.65 4.54PVC 1 51.9
4.5 12.0 5.62 5.14PVC 2 52.0
2.2 12.5 7.99 8.05_______________________________
_______________________________LSD0.05 4.42
1.42 1.0 0.19 0.44
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Are Modified Atmosphere gases additives, or
processing aids?

• According to FDA, MAP gases are processing aids.
  There is no lasting functional effect in the
  food, and there is an insignificant amount of gas
  present in the finished product under conditions
  of use (Rulis, 2002).
• If CO is a food additive, how about Oxygen,
  Nitrogen, Carbon Dioxide?

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Safety Issues with CO Itself are not currently at
issue

• Consumption of 1/2 lb of CO-treated steak 3.6
  of EPA 8 hr safe level of 52 mg (9 ppm for 8
  hr).
• Consumer would need to inhale contents of 208
  packages to exceed EPA safe level for 8 hr.

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CO has Biological Functions

• CO is produced naturally by heme oxidase in
  recycling of blood pigments (Durante Schafer,
  1998).
• CO regulates blood flow / fluidity by inhibiting
  vasomotor tone and platelet aggregation.
• Mean CO-hemoglobin levels of non-smokers is 1.5
  of total hemoglobin, with 0.5 due to normal
  bodily CO production.

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Recommendation

• No regulatory changes are needed.
• MAP gases are Processing Aids, as previously
  ruled, and are not Additives.
• FDA has addressed shelf life and safety issues of
  fresh meat in low CO-MAP.
• Therefore, allow market forces to determine the
  acceptability of competing packaging technologies.

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USU References

• CO pre-treatment for redness of vacuum packaged
  beef (Jayasingh et al., 2001. Meat Sci.
  59317-324).
• Sensory Evaluation of Ground Beef in 80 Oxygen
  MAP (Jayasingh et al., 2002. J. Food Sci.
  67349-96).
• Comparison of 0.4 CO MAP vs 80 O2 MAP on
  sensory / color of ground beef and steaks (John,
  Cornforth et al JFS 69608 (2004)Meat Sci 69441
  (2005).