Effect of Oxygen and Storage Temperature on Intermediate Moisture Meat Products

During storage of glycerol desorbed intermediate moisture meats at 38°C it was found that, for both protein crosslinking and loss of haemoprotein character to occur, oxygen must be present. However, collagen degradation, as monitored by the formation of water-soluble hydroxyproline containing fragments, still occurred in the absence of oxygen although the rate of degradation was slower than that observed in aerobically stored samples. The rates of the various deteriorative reactions also varied with storage temperature, there being the expected decrease in rate with temperature for both the crosslinking and haemoprotein breakdown reactions. However, the temperature dependence of the collagen breakdown reaction was apparently more complex as there was no measurable breakdown, even during several months of storage, at temperatures of 17°C and below.