Preserving freshness of chevon under superchilling storage

Superchilling is a new concept where the product temperature is lowered by 1 to 2°C below the initial freezing point to preserve the freshness of the product. Freshness of aerobically packed chevon was studied under two superchilling (ST1: -0.5±0.5 and ST2: -2.0±0.5°C) and frozen (-20±1°C) temperatures. During the storage period of 28 days, moisture content in frozen chevon was significantly (P<0.05) lower than both superchilled samples. Protein and fat contents of both the superchilled samples decreased significantly (P<0.05) during the storage. Nevertheless, the protein content in the chevon stored at 2.0±0.5°C was 21.16% and significantly (P<0.05) higher than the chevon stored at superchilling (-0.5±0.5°C) and frozen temperature. Superchilled chevon had significantly (P<0.05) lower extract release volume and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances values which decreased at the end of storage. Similarly, the tyrosine value was increased significantly (P<0.05) in both samples during the entire storage period. There was significant (P<0.05) reduction in water holding capacity of frozen chevon compared to superchilled chevon. Total plate count was significantly (P<0.05) higher in the chevon sample stored at -0.5±0.5°C than in the other two treatments. The total plate count and psychrophilic counts increased during the entire storage period. The study concluded that storage of chevon at superchilling temperature of -2.0±0.5°C could be an effective method in preserving the freshness of chevon up to 28 days taking into consideration colour, juiciness and overall acceptability.