Abstract:To provide theoretical guidance for prolonging the storage period of fresh chicken meat, guaranteeing its quality safety and expanding the circulation area, fresh chicken meat was used as the research object in this study, the effects of different irradiation doses (0, 2, 4, 6 kGy) and packaging materials (PE, PA/PE, PVDC/PE) on the quality of fresh chicken meat during storage at 4 ℃ were studied, based on the measurements of the drip loss rate, TVB-N, TBA, color difference and total bacteria count. The results showed that irradiation could effectively kill the microorganisms in chicken meat and inhibit the growth of microorganisms. However, after irradiation, the TBA value increased significantly (P<0.05), and the lipid oxidation induced by irradiation had a great effect on the quality of chicken meat. The examinations on irradiation combined with different packaging materials showed that the quality of chicken meat in the PA/PE packaging group was better during storage, and after irradiation, the TBA value changed little, ranging from 0~0.76 mg/kg for individual sample groups, and their colors were quite good during storage, with the a* value increasing up to 5.12 (4 kGy). Taken together, PA/PE packaging combined with irradiation at a dose of 4 kGy was the optimal option to ensure the safety and quality of fresh chicken meat, and extend the storage period at 4 ℃ to 18 days.
