Hyperbaric storage at variable room temperature - A new preservation methodology for minced meat compared to refrigeration.

Hyperbaric storage (HS) at variable room temperature (RT) has been proposed as an alternative to refrigeration at atmospheric pressure (RF/AP) for food preservation and scarce information is available regarding HS effect in meat products. In this study the RT/HS effect was evaluated at 100 MPa and variable RT (≈20 °C) for minced meat preservation up to 24 h, initially for one batch, and further two other different batches were independently studied. To assess RT/HS feasibility, microbiological and physicochemical parameters were analyzed, using storage at RF/AP and variable RT/AP (≈20 °C), for comparison. A post-hyperbaric storage (post-HS) was also tested over 4 days at RF/AP. For the first batch, the results showed that RT/HS maintained the total aerobic mesophiles value similar to lower (P<0.05) compared to initial sample, whereas at RF/AP and RT/AP, values increased to >6 Log CFU/g after 24 h. Similarly, Enterobacteriaceae increased >1 and >2 Log CFU/g at RF/AP and RT/AP, respectively, while yeasts and moulds presented overall loads similar to lower compared to the initial samples for all storage conditions, whereas RT/HS allowed to obtain always lower counts. Regarding pH, lipid oxidation, and colour parameters, RT/HS did not cause significant changes when compared to RF/AP, except after 24 h where pH increased. The three batches presented similar results, being the differences observed mainly due to samples heterogeneity. RT/HS is a potential quasi-energetic costless alternative to RF for at least short-term preservation of minced meat. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.