Determinación de la vida útil de cortes bovinos empacados al vacío bajo tres temperaturas de refrigeración.

Abstract

Beef is a high-risk perishable food, due to its composition, high percentage of humidity, pH close to neutrality and rich content in proteins. The present project aims to determine the shelf life of vacuum-packed beef cuts destined for export, to meet the requirements for different countries of commercial interest. For this purpose, four vacuum-packed cuts of meat from the same lot were selected and refrigerated for 45 days under three conservation temperatures. Each sample was analyzed for physicochemical, microbiological, and sensory parameters, determining the parameters that indicate the deterioration of the cut and thus estimating the useful life of the product through a probabilistic method and mathematical modeling of microbial growth. It was possible to obtain that the useful life at -5°C was in average of 128 days for the 4 evaluated cuts, these validated times fulfill the expectations of the study and allow to fulfill the requirements for export in conditions of refrigeration.