Effect Of Different Salt Concentration On The Microbiological Quality Of Fresh Meat Sold In The Okigwe Local Abattoir, Imo State, Nigeria

Abstract

The effects of different salt concentration on the Microbiological quality of meat were studied in order to fashion out the ideal concentration that will reduce or retard Microbial spoilage of meat and become cheaper than high cost preservative. Ten (10) samples of fresh meat of the same weight (10cm) length, 1cm in diameter, and 2cm in width) were purchased from the Okigwe abattoir and labelled from salt concentration 2-16, and with the following percentages = 2%, 4%, 6%, 8%, 9.8%, 10%, 12%, 14% and 16% respectively. The above percentages were subjected to microbial analysis. The results obtained show that Acetobacter, Vibro Spp., Micrococci spp., and Bacillus spp., were identified with 2% salt concentration: Acetobacter, Vibro spp., Micrococci spp., and Clostridium spp., were present in sample with 4% salt concentration, Staphylococci spp. and Clostridium spp. were predominant in all samples analyzed. The results revealed that microbial growth retarded immensely with an increase of salt concentration and vise versa

Effects of Marination with Different Salt Concentrations on Some Quality Criteria of Beef Meat

“…Meat is one of the main sources of protein for the nutrition of human in the world and contains valuable nutrients such as vitamin B12 and other B vitamins, iron, zinc, selenium and phosphorus with high biological value (Pereira and Vicente ,2013;Zerabruk et al, 2019). In addition, fresh meat can spoil as a result of contamination from physical, microbial and chemical hazards (Soyiri et al, 2008;Okoronkwo et al, 2014). Meat and meat products provide an appropriate growth environment for bacteria, yeast and molds.…”

“…Along with the hygiene and the acidity of the meat, storage temperature, and the structure of the muscle tissue are also factors that affect the deterioration of meat (Dave and Ghaly, 2011). Microorganisms that cause spoilage can reduce the quality of meat, a valuable source of protein, making it tasteless or making it a source of foodborne infection (Sofos, 1994;Okoronkwo et al, 2014). Therefore, various processing and preservation methods are applied to inactivate or inhibit microbial growth to lengthen the product's shelf life while maintaining flavor and safety (Sofos, 1994).…”