The effects of curing technology on the rheological and organoleptic features of meat products

Meat products are important staple foodstuffs owing to their high protein, vitamin and mineral content. Meat plants do not only use traditional production technologies but also develop methods that preserve the nutritional value of meat or improve the texture and organoleptic features of meat products. These features play an important role in the consumer society. Consumers first meet the external features of meat and this experience influences their decisions. Our analyses compared a traditional and a new curing procedure. Besides organoleptic inspections, we analysed texture with a CT3 type Texture Analyser to obtain quantified information on the condition of meat samples in the various curing phases. We used our results to compare traditional and new curing procedures.