Evaluation of weakly acidic electrolyzed water and modified atmosphere packaging on the shelf life and quality of farmed puffer fish (Takifugu obscurus) during cold storage

Abstract

The combined effect of weakly acidic electrolyzed water (WAEW) and modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) treatments on the quality of puffer fish (Takifugu obscurus) during cold storage was studied on aspects of microbiological activity, texture, total volatile basic nitrogen (TVB‐N), trimethylamine (TMA), free amino acids (FAAs), thiobarbituric acid reactive substance (TBARS), ATP‐related compounds and K value, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and organoleptic properties. As a result, significantly (p < .05) higher inhibitory effects on total viable counts (TVC), H2S‐producing bacteria (including Shewanella putrefaciens), Pseudomonas spp., and lactic acid bacteria (LAB) were observed in WAEW‐treated puffer fish packaged in 60%CO2/5%O2/35%N2 atmosphere than that in air package and vacuum package with/without WAEW‐treated samples. In addition, chemical results showed that WAEW together with MAP treatments were highly efficient in maintaining lower TVB‐N, TMA, and TBARS values in refrigerated puffer fish. Moreover, the presence of WAEW combined with MAP treatments showed positive effects on retarding the relative content of fishy flavor compounds, such as 1‐octen‐3‐ol, 1‐penten‐3‐ol, hexanal, heptanal, nonanal, decanal, (E)‐2‐octenal, and 2,3‐butanedione. As a whole, the combined effect of WAEW and MAP on refrigerated puffer fish is advisable to maintain better quality and extend the shelf life.

Effects of slightly acidic electrolyzed water pretreatment combined with biopreservatives on the shelf life of refrigerated obscure pufferfish (Takifugu obscurus)

“…Thus, using TVC as the standard to determine the shelf life of obscure pufferfish, the shelf life of RE+PLH group exhibited 6 days longer than CK group. Similar results were reported by Li, Chen, Tan, Mei, and Xie (2020), who found that SAEW combined with modified atmosphere packaging could extend the shelf life of farmed pufferfish.…”

“…The initial TVB‐N content was 8.99 mgN/100 g, which was close to 8.69 mgN/100 g found by Li et al. (2020). The content of TVB‐N increased rapidly at the end of storage except RE+PLH group, which suggested that RE+ε‐PLH treatment could effectively retard TVB‐N increase and maintain the freshness of samples.…”

Non-Thermal Methods for Ensuring the Microbiological Quality and Safety of Seafood

“…These results in agreement with Lin et al (2013) [228] indicate that AEW ice can serve as an innovative method to retain the quality of shrimps. In addition, lower TVB-N, trimethylamine (TMA), and thiobarbituric acid reactive substance (TBARS) values also reported for raw puffer fish (Takifugu obscurus) stored at 4 • C after treatment with weakly acidic EW (WAEW) and modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) [229]. Overall, Li et al (2020) [229] concluded that WAEW and MAP (60% CO 2 ; 5% O 2 ; 35% N 2 ) significantly extended the shelf life and maintained the better quality of the farmed puffer fish.…”

“…In addition, lower TVB-N, trimethylamine (TMA), and thiobarbituric acid reactive substance (TBARS) values also reported for raw puffer fish (Takifugu obscurus) stored at 4 • C after treatment with weakly acidic EW (WAEW) and modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) [229]. Overall, Li et al (2020) [229] concluded that WAEW and MAP (60% CO 2 ; 5% O 2 ; 35% N 2 ) significantly extended the shelf life and maintained the better quality of the farmed puffer fish. Khazandi et al (2017) [203] similarly reported increased shelf life of Southern Australian King George Whiting (KGW) and Tasmanian Atlantic Salmon (TAS) refrigerated (4 • C) fillets by 2 and 4 days, respectively, after treatment with pH neutral EW solution of 15 and 50%.…”

“…Khazandi et al (2017) [203] similarly reported increased shelf life of Southern Australian King George Whiting (KGW) and Tasmanian Atlantic Salmon (TAS) refrigerated (4 • C) fillets by 2 and 4 days, respectively, after treatment with pH neutral EW solution of 15 and 50%. Finally, numerous studies indicating the potential of using different types of EW on fish and seafood products to retain their main physicochemical [14,199,216,223,[229][230][231] and sensory characteristics [198,205,215,218] playing an essential role in consumer acceptance.…”