Meat Quality On Course

Define meat

The muscles and associated structures of animals consumed for food.

i.e. offal, neurological tissue and fish excluded.

Define meat quality

Quality has been defined by the set of attributes that allow the product to satisfy end-user needs, which cover organoleptic, nutritional, safety, commercial, technological and image attributes.

List factors effecting consumer perspective of quality

- Organoleptic experience (i.e. taste, tenderness, appearance, smell)

- Perceived healthiness and safety (no contaminants, residues or bugs)

- Provenance, ethical production and food miles

Discuss stakeholder interactions of meat science

Discuss provenance in consumers

- Limit confinement of animals (i.e. grass feed)

- Production without antibiotics, hormones or partitioning agents

Describe organoleptic qualities before cooking

- Colour: bright red with white fat

- Appearance and handle: firm well demarcated cuts

- Large muscle area, not so much fat

- Smell: nothing obnoxious

Describe organoleptic qualities after cooking

- Tenderness

- Taste

- Juiciness

- Overall eating satisfaction

Discuss desires of processors

- High carcass yeild

- Animals 'on the grid'

- Clean product (i.e. QA programs)

Metric describing the profitability of a sheep meat or beef enterprise

Kg of lamb/beef/first limiting resource (usually /Ha but can sometime be another input).

List tools of producers to alter meat production

- Environmental management

- Genetics

- Stock handling

List the phases of converting muscle to meat

1. Cessation of metabolic function of the muscle cells

i.e. oxidative phosphorylation ceases followed by glycolysis (reducing pH)

2. Onset of rigor mortis (4-24hrs after death dependent on temperature, carcass size and species)

3. Relaxation of rigor mortis by proteolysis caused by calpain and cathepsin endogenous enzymes