Impacts of biopolymer infusion on quality traits of pork sausages during storage

TL;DR

Adding chitosan to pork sausages improves their shelf life and quality during storage without affecting taste or safety.

Contribution

The study demonstrates that chitosan infusion enhances sausage preservation and texture while reducing microbial growth.

Findings

Sausages with chitosan had lower pH and reduced microbial counts compared to controls.

Chitosan improved color parameters and texture during storage without affecting thiobarbituric acid reactive substances.

Cellulose increased pH, while chitosan decreased it, affecting sausage quality differently.

Abstract

We aimed to verify the impacts of cellulose/chitosan addition on the physicochemical properties of sausages.

Sausages were prepared using 3% cellulose or chitosan and compared with those without biopolymers (control).

Sausages containing chitosan exhibited decreased pH values (p< 0.05), whereas those containing cellulose exhibited increased pH values. 2-thiobarbituric acid reactive substances values did not differ between the control and biopolymer samples. The biopolymer samples had lower volatile basic nitrogen contents than the control samples after 4 weeks of storage (p<0.05). The addition of chitosan significantly reduced the microbiological counts of sausages. Moreover, the infusion of chitosan led to lower lightness (L*) and whiteness (W) values but higher redness (a*), yellowness (b*), chroma (C*), and hue-angle (h°) values (p<0.05). During storage, the sausages containing chitosan exhibited significantly better textural parameters, except for springiness and gumminess.

In conclusion, adding chitosan could reduce microbial growth and prolong the expiration date of sausages without compromising quality.