APLICACIÓN DE LUZ ULTRAVIOLETA-C Y ADITIVOS NATURALES PARA EXTENDER LA VIDA ÚTIL DE LA CARNE BOVINA

Abstract

Meat is a product that, due to its intrinsic characteristics, allows the development of a great variety of microorganisms at the surface, which can generate waste products from the metabolism of available nutrients inducing alterations mainly in appearance, odor, and taste. Therefore, the higher the microbial load of food, the greater the magnitude of the alterations and consequently, it will have a shorter shelf life. The objective of this work was to evaluate the effect of joint application of UV-C-light and natural additives, rosemary essential oil and lactic acid, on refrigerated beef shelf life. Experimental trials were carried out from samples of beef obtained from Longissimus dorsi muscle (pH = 5.8) placed in individual sterile Petri plates irradiated with UV-C light for 5 minutes and then sprayed with 1 ml of a solution of rosemary essential oil and lactic acid (1:1). Untreated samples were considered as Control. All samples were packaged with polyethylene films and stored in refrigeration conditions to 0, 4 and 8 ºC. The results obtained made it possible to determine the microbiological and sensory shelf life. The combined application of UV-C light and natural additives allowed to obtain a product with a longer microbiological and sensory shelf life for the temperatures commonly used in commercial refrigeration, thus guaranteeing its quality and safety to protect public health