Microbiology of Meats

Abstract

Just spoiled Unacceptable Well spoiled Nearly putrid Putrid Handling of samples for storage tests: Beef in various forms was used as the starting material Large pieces obtained from carcasses of animals, cut off immediately after dressing at the slaughterhouse. 1 3 4 Ib pieces of beef, with varying proportions of fat, obtained from retail butchers. Minced beef from retail butchers and supermarkets. Only material adjudged to be fresh and of good general quality was employed for samples used in storage tests. For greater consistency all stored samples were reduced to about the same degree of comminution, approximately similar to the finest obtainable from butchers and containing small visible pieces of fat. The pieces of meat used were first cut by a sharp knife before successive comminution (see also Method 2). The fresh sample was distributed into several small jars, which were all stored on the same shelf of an incubator controlled at f5". Then on each selected day for examination a jar was removed and the sample was retomminuted by Method 1. In order to reduce the effect of differing aerobic conditions the jars in each storage experiment were filled to approximately the same level.