Molecular methods for identification of microorganisms in traditional meat products

Abstract

Traditional fermentations are those that have been used for centuries and even pre-date written historical records. Fermentation processes have been developed to upgrade plant and animal materials, to yield a more acceptable food, to add flavor, to prevent the growth of pathogenic and spoilage microorganisms, and to preserve food without refrigeration (Hesseltine & Wang, 1980). Among fermented foods, sausages are the meat products with a longer history and tradition. It is often assumed that sausages were invented by the Sumerians, in what is Iraq today, around 3000∈BC. Chinese sausage làcháng, which consisted of goat and lamb meat, was first mentioned in 589∈BC. Homer, the poet of The Ancient Greece, mentioned a kind of blood sausage in the Odyssey (book 20, verse 25), and Epicharmus (ca. 550∈BC-ca. 460∈BC) wrote a comedy entitled The Sausage. © 2008 Springer New York.