Effect of Vacuum, Polyvinyl Chloride, Modified Atmospheric Packaging, and Extended Frozen Storage on the Color and Lipid Oxidation of Ground Beef Patties

Limited knowledge
is currently available about the effects
of extended
frozen storage and packaging on ground beef color. The objective was
to evaluate the impact of four packaging types and storage times on
the raw color and lipid oxidation of frozen ground beef patties. Fresh
beef shoulder rolls were obtained from a local purveyor. After grinding,
150 g of patties were randomly assigned to polyvinyl chloride overwrap
(PVC), vacuum, high-oxygen-modified atmospheric packaging (HiOx-MAP;
80% oxygen and 20% carbon dioxide), or carbon monoxide-modified atmospheric
packaging (CO-MAP; 0.4% CO, 19.6% carbon dioxide, and 80% nitrogen).
Patties were frozen at −5 °C and stored in the dark for
3, 90, or 180 days. The patty color was measured utilizing a HunterLab
MiniScan portable spectrophotometer, and color changes were characterized
as lightness (L*), redness (a*),
chroma, hue angle, and percentage metmyoglobin. Lipid oxidation was
determined using the thiobarbituric acid reactive substances assay.
CO-MAP retained the greatest external redness (P <
0.05) compared to the other packaging types on day 180 of frozen storage
(CO-MAP > vacuum > PVC > HiOx-MAP; P <
0.05).
Patties packaged in CO-MAP had lower (P < 0.05)
lipid oxidation compared with vacuum, PVC, or HiOx-MAP. The current
study indicates that CO-MAP can be an effective choice for preserving
frozen ground beef over extended periods with less lipid oxidation,
particularly when maintaining a bright red color is important.