Studies on some comminuted meat products prepared from spent chicken during storage at refrigeration and frozen temperatures under aerobic packaging conditions

A study on the development of some chicken products (chicken kofta, frankfurters and chicken sandwiches) from spent chicken meat, their storage stability and public health importance has been undertaken. The study envisaged two different packaging materials i.e. low density polyethylene (LDPE) and aluminum foil laminates and two different storage temperatures (refrigerated (4°C) and frozen (−18°C). Samples were analyzed for pH, 2-thiobarbituric Acid (TBA) value, tyrosine value, moisture content, microbial parameters like Standard Plate Count (SPC), Total Psychrotrophic Count (TPSC) and sensory qualities in different storage intervals. During refrigerated and frozen storage, pH, TBA value, tyrosine value, SPC, TPSC of all the products increased with the progress of the storage period. The moisture content, appearance, flavor, tenderness and overall acceptability scores of the products showed a declining trend up to the end of the storage period. Two types of packaging materials did not affect significantly the product qualities. The shelf life of meat kofta was extended in refrigerated temperature for extra one week and was doubled in the frozen storage under the conditions of aerobic packaging. The aluminium foil showed a marginal advantage over the polyethylene in case of Chicken frankfurter and the shelf life of the chicken frankfurter was 20 days. On the basis of TBA value and flavor score, the chicken sandwiches were acceptable up to 14^th day of refrigerated storage. This study also revealed that the freezing temperature extended the storage life of meat kofta almost three times.