Antibacterial effect of an active absorbent pad on rabbit meat in modified atmosphere packaging during shelf life: preliminary results
Castrica M.1, Miraglia D.2, Guillervic M.3, Agradi S.4, Contò M.5, Brecchia G.4, Ben Salem I.6, Menchetti L.7, Colin M.8, Fehri N.4, Curone G.4, Balzaretti M.C.4
- University of Padova, Italy
- University of Perugia, Italy
- Valorex, France
- University of Milan, Italy
- CREA, Monterotondo, Italy
- ENMV, Tunisia
- University of Camerino, Italy
- Copri, France
The study aimed to evaluate the efficacy that an active absorbent pad has in limiting microbial growth during the shelf-life of fresh rabbit meat in modified atmosphere packaging (MAP). The experiment was conducted on 30 portions of things, packed in MAP (70% O2, 30% CO2), one containing the conventional pad (control group) and the other containing the active pad (PAD group). The analyses, performed at 1, 7, 14, and 21 days of refrigeration storage, concerned total viable count (TVC), Staphylococcus spp., and E. coli. In general, there were no differences between the two types of packaging for all microbiological parameters investigated. Regarding the trend over time, at the end of shelf life, a significant increase (p < 0.05) was observed for TVC and Staphylococcus spp. but not for E. coli. Interesting decrease in TVC after 7 days in the PAD group that was not recorded in the control group. This decrease needs to be further investigated to define the real effectiveness of the MAP+ active pad combination on rabbit meat microbiological profile.
4-6 October, Lubiana, Slovenia
