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Electronic tongue measurements as a predictor for sensory properties of vacuum-packed minced beef - A preliminary
Matthew D Wilson1, Ian G Hunt2, Samantha M Sawyer3
1Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia; School of Agriculture, Food & Wine, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.
Abstract:
Changes in meat sensory quality during storage are difficult to assess accurately and objectively. Advanced analytical technologies for sensory assessment could help predict sensory changes. In this study, vacuum-packed (VP) minced beef was incubated at four different temperatures until the end of its quality shelf-life, before conducting instrumental taste analysis with an Insent electronic tongue and analysis of volatile compounds with headspace SPME GC-MS. It was found that storage time and storage temperature variables explained variation in odour, sourness and umami (adjusted R-squared values of 61 %, 58 % and 63 % respectively), with a relationship identified between sourness and umami tastes and the abundance of volatile compounds (2-butanone, methyl butyrate, methyl valerate and ethyl acetate), and trained panel scores of the odour of beef. The results highlighted that instrumental taste measurements could be used as a potential predictor of sensory shelf-life in vacuum packed beef.
