Nowadays, consumers are demanding more natural foods, obliging the industry to include natural antioxidants in foods. Natural antioxidants have been used instead of synthetic antioxidants to retard lipid oxidation in foods to improve their quality and nutritional value. This review discusses some aspects of recent research on antioxidant activity of plant extracts and natural compounds to improve meat quality. Many herbs, spices, and their extracts have been reported as having high antioxidant capacity, such as some plants of the Lamiaceae family, e.g., oregano (Origanum vulgare L.), rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.), and sage (Salvia officinalis L.). The antioxidant activity of these plants is attributed to their phenolic compound content, which includes volatile compounds also known as essential oils. Several factors that cause some differences on the antioxidant activity of plant extracts include: type of solvent used during extraction, measurement method, and number of samples. Some studies have demonstrated that shelf-life and meat quality can be improved by using natural antioxidants in some stages of meat production. The main effects of these compounds are reducing microbial growth and lipid oxidation during storage. Nevertheless, more research is needed to determine antimicrobial activity of natural antioxidants in meat during storage, identify the main metabolic pathway of these compounds, and its effect on other meat quality parameters.

Puffed quinoa can be used as ready-to-eat breakfast food or as an ingredient in snack formulations. In this study, puffed quinoa products with and without starch-chitosan coating were developed by gun, extrusion and microwave puffing at different process conditions (pressure, power, moisture content and energy consumption). Size, bulk density, colour, expansion index, water absorption and solubility, microstructure, mechanical and thermal properties, chemical composition and in vitro digestibility of organic matter and proteins of popped quinoa were assessed. Optimal process conditions for gun puffing were maximum 1.31 MPa after 780 s, 500 r.p.m. and 180 s for extrusion puffing and 1200 W for 60 s applying microwave puffing at 18-20% moisture contents. Gun and extrusion puffing yielded high-quality popped quinoa with a biological availability of organic matter between 84-88% and 79-90% for proteins. Extrusion and gun puffing are the most promising processes to prepare quinoa snacks.

El objetivo de este trabajo fue caracterizar rebaños lecheros que presentaban muestras de leche positivas a la prueba de alcohol sin estar ácidas, y compararlos con predios negativos a esta prueba, considerándose el efecto de la estacionalidad. Se estudiaron cuatro rebaños (tres positivos a la prueba de alcohol y uno negativo). En dos años, se muestreó leche durante tres meses en lactancias de invierno (época 1) y tres meses en lactancias de verano (época 2). En la dieta, se realizó análisis proximal relativo a EM, Ca, P, Mg y K. En leche, se determinó proteína, lactosa, Ca, P, Mg, K, pH, prueba de alcohol, acidez titulable y actividad proteásica. En casos negativos a la prueba de alcohol, se observó alta correlación entre proteína cruda láctea, proteína cruda en alimento, fósforo lácteo y lactosa. Los predios positivos a la prueba de alcohol se correlacionaron fuertemente con la menor concentración de materia seca y el alto contenido de fibra cruda, además presentaron menor concentración de proteína láctea. Ello indicaría que existió un efecto del manejo alimentario sobre la inestabilidad de la leche. Las lactancias desarrolladas durante la sequía estival sufren de un stress alimenticio, por lo cual podrían presentar inestabilidad láctea.

C. Barchiesi, P. Williams, and A. Velásquez. 2018. Extrusion of lupin and pea decrease the ruminal degradability improving true ileal digestibility of crude protein. Cienc. Inv. Agr. 45(3): 231-239. The aim of this work was to evaluate the effect of the extrusion of dehulled lupins (Lupinus albus L.) and peas (Pisum sativum L.) on the ruminal degradability and intestinal digestibility of their protein contents. Ruminal degradability was evaluated in situ in the rumens of two fistulated cows. The true ileal crude protein (CP) digestibility was evaluated via a bioassay with Sprague Dawley laboratory rats as the animal model. Extrusion caused soluble fraction decreases in both feeds (P<0.05), with a 29 % decrease in the extruded dehulled lupins (EDL) and a 59 % decrease in the extruded peas (EP). The degradable fraction (B) in EP increased by 19 % compared to that in raw peas (RP) (P<0.05), and there was no effect of extrusion on the degradable fraction in lupins (P>0.05). Extrusion decreased the effective degradability (ED) of lupins by 12 % (P<0.05). Moreover, in EP, extrusion presented no effect on the ED (P>0.05). The extrusion process had a greater impact on the reduction of the effective degradability in lupins than it did in peas. Nevertheless, extrusion increased the true ileal CP digestibility of the ruminal postfermentation residues in both feeds.

The aim of this study was to compare the effects of a pine (Pinus radiata D. Don) bark extract (PBE) with a quebracho (Schinopsis balansae Engl.) extract (QTE) on methane (CH4) production and in vitro rumen fermentation parameters. A forage diet supplemented with PBE or QTE (0, 2 and 4% dry matter (DM) basis) was incubated for 24 h to determine in vitro DM disappearance (IVDMD), CH4, volatile fatty acids (VFA), and ammonia nitrogen (NH3-N) production. Differences were analyzed using Tukey’s test, orthogonal contrasts, hierarchical clustering heatmap (HCH), and principal component analysis (PCA). Both extracts (4% DM) decreased butyrate (Bu; p = 0.001), CH4 (p = 0.005), total VFA (p < 0.001), and NH3-N (p = 0.006) production and increased acetate (Ac; p = 0.003) without affecting the partitioning factor (p = 0.095). Propionate (Pr; p = 0.016) was increased, whereas IVDMD (p = 0.041) was decreased with QTE (4% DM). The inclusion of QTE (2% DM) decreased CH4 production (p = 0.005) and the (Ac + Bu)/Pr ratio (p = 0.003), whereas PBE (2% DM) decreased the NH3-N (p = 0.006) and total VFA production (p < 0.001). The HCH and PCA indicate a negative correlation (r = −0.93; p < 0.001) between CH4 production and tannins. In conclusion, PBE shares many of the effects generated by QTE on ruminal fermentation, although the magnitude of these effects depends on concentration. The PBE could be used as an additive in ruminant diets to reduce CH4 and NH3-N production without reducing IVDMD or increasing propionate, but further in vivo studies are required to clarify its effects on animal production.