ORGANOLEPTIC AND

OTHER PROPERTIES
AND ABNORMALITIES
OF MEAT
 Colour (myoglobin, haemoglobin content)
 Odour/taste
 Flavour (Free amino acids, creatine, nucleotides,
IMP, carnosine, glucose, lower fatty acids, N-
containing compounds: pyrazine, oxygen and/or
sulphur containing ompounds)
 Body condition
 Imperfect bleeding
 Rotting
 Stuffiness
 OTHERS
 Colour
 THE NORMAL COLOUR
 Scarlet (purple-red) (not exposed to atmospheric oxygen yet)

 Cherry-red (oxymyoglobin)

 Brownish-red (methmyoglobin, e.g. fish food that is rich in

unsaturated fatty acids)

 AFFECTED COLOUR
 Green (verdochromin: decomposition or bacterial decay)

 Yellow 1. Pigment of internal origin, e.g juidance that is

pathologic or
 2. Pigment of exogenous origin, e.g. mainly plant lipochromes

from feed)
 MEASUREMENT OF COLOUR
 Photometrically
CHANGES IN COLOUR-YELLOW

 NON-PATHOLOGIC (Developed on alimentary basis)

 LIPOCHROMATOSIS: Yellow discoloration is found usually in the
liver of cattle (Overfed with caroten. Palmitin) (Lipochromes:
ether-soluble)
 Judgement:
 Approved for human consumption (Only the liver is
condemned: partial condemnation)
 Condemned for human consumption (If accompanied
with abnormal/musty odour)
 YELLOW BACON: At slaughter when the meat is warm this kind
of disorder cannot be seen. It appears at 24 hours after slaughter
(Low level of antioxidants and high level of unsaturated fatty
acids in the diet. Lipofuschin-like material is deposited)
 Judgement:
 Approved for human consumption (It is suggested for
industrial processing).
CHANGES IN COLOUR-YELLOW

 PATHOLOGIC
 ICTERUS (Pathologic deposition of bile pigments: alcohol-
soluble)
 Ante-mortem: conjuctiva and mucosa of the mouth
 Post-mortem: So called white points are yellow:
 Joints
 Tendons
 Fat deposits
 Serous membranes
 Aorta ascendens
 Sternum

CHANGES IN COLOUR-YELLOW

 Judgement:
 In EU, any degree of icterus:Condemned
PIGMENTATION: BLACK
 Pathologic deposition of melanin (Normally only in skin, hair,
claw and hoof)
 Localization: Subserously, Intramuscularly: fascia)
 Size: from lentil up to humans’ head
 Judgement:
 According to the general (overall) judgment of tumors
(Frequency, pattern of localization and shape)
 Approved for h.c. (If they are in low number and easily can be
removed) (It is suggested for industrial processing)
 Condemned (If those are large-extended, metastatics cannot
be trimmed perfectly)
EXAMINATION OF ODOUR (AND
TASTE)
 BOILING (meat) and ROASTING (fat)
TESTS
 Carried out 24 hours after slaughter (The
meat easily takes up and releases odour,
aeration of meat):
METHODS

 Pour water into an empty pot enough to cover the

meat and heat under cover. At boiling, put a fist-
sized meat into the pot for 5-10 min. Take off fast,
cut and take the smell immediately (smell escapes
rapidly) (Odour is trapped by a shell of coagulated
proteins and at cut it escapes rapidly)
 Cut small pieces of meat into the pot that is filled
with water. Boil under cover. Sometimes take off the
cover and take the smell.
 At roasting, the fat&bacon is cut for small pieces and
it is started roasting slowly and continuously taking
the smell
POSSIBLE JUDGEMENTS RELATED
TO THE BOILING TEST
 No abnormal odour: Approved for human
consumption
 Strong abnormal odour: Condemned for
human consumption
 In EU: detected abnormality: condemned
SPECIFIED CASES WHEN BOILING
TEST MUST BE CARRIED OUT
 On occasion of any kind of special slaughter
(emergency, casualty)
 In case of cryptorchism
 In the presence of purulent-suppurative
processes/inflammation
 In case of supplementary laboratory meat
examination
 When toxicosis is suspected
 At re-examination of frozen meat (after defrosting)
(freezing can hide abnormalities)
ORIGIN OF ABNORMAL ODOURS
(and taste)
 Alimentary (Fed on fish flour, beet root,
mouldy, yeast)
 Sexual (boar, scatol, androgens)
 5 alpha androszteron
 Skatole
 Warm meat →Most intensive
 Judgement after 24 h chilling, boiling test
ORIGIN OF ABNORMAL ODOURS
 Intravital
 Perforation of rumen-reticulum
 uraemia,
 ascaridosis,
 purrulent-suppurative, and lab findings,
 stuffiness,
 medicines, chemical subst.)
 Post-mortem: (Garlic, disinfecting agents,
synthetic paints, anise)
 Ventillation ( at 7°C or -18°C)
 Judgement: boiling test
CHANGES IN BODY CONDITION

 Thin (poorness)(alimentation) (Non-pathologic)

 Emaciated (Pathologic)
 Cachexic (Pathologic)
 Thin:
 The musculature is firm, surface is dark, dry,
reduced quantity of fat around kidneys and the fat
is hardening upon chilling, pH is normal.
 Judgement: Approved for h.c. (Suggested for
industrial processing)
CHANGES IN BODY CONDITION

 Emaciated:
 The musculature is soft, light red, wet
surface, fat around kidneys is in reduced
quantity and is hardening upon chilling but at
some areas it is substituted for gelatinous
material. pH is not characteristic.
 In EU: Condemned
CHANGES IN BODY CONDITION

 Cachexy:
 The bulk of musculature is reduced
 Muscles are soft with oedematic feature
(palpation)
 There is no adipose depots and are
substituted for gelatinous material
 Internal organs are smaller
 pH is not characteristic
 Judgement: Condemned for h.c.
 IMPERFECT BLEEDING
 1.Technical reason (Sticking)
 2.Diseases (Tetany, Pseudorabies=Aujeszky’s d., etc.),
Exhaustion, Stress.
 FINDING
 Musculature is dark-red

 Parenchymal organs are rich in blood (congested)

 The vessels of the parietal serous membranes are full of blood

(engorgement of capillaries) and appear to the eye (Normally

cannot be seen)
 The vessels of subcutaneous connective tissue are well

observable following removal of skin. Due to the developed high

blood pressure, these vessels may be ruptured and the blood is
streaming down (spleshing).
 Judgement
 In EU: Any degree of imperfect bleeding: Condemned
 Rotting
 Rotting is the result of bacterial activity that takes
place:
 Intravital infection upon stress or exhaustion when
microbes can get into the circulation from the
intestines.
 Post-mortem (Storage at higher temperature, core
temperature is higher, storage at room
temperature).
 All those bacteria may be involved that have at
least proteolytic enzymes.
Aerobe rotting
 (Pseudomonas spp capable of decomposing protein, fat, carbohydrates,
Proteus spp., Achromobacter spp, Micrococcus spp., Alcaligenes spp.)
Bacterial decomposition: polyamines, putrescine, cadaverine, volatile
carboxylic acids, indol, scatol, phenols, S-containing compounds,
mercaptain, ammonia, H2S (small quantiy), acetic acid, butyric acid,
proprionic acid, etc.
 Starts developing superficially but deeper layers may also be
affected (Penetrate into deeper layers along with connective tissues
and vessels and fat is also decomposed).
 Peptonization (The surface of muscle is covered by mucinous,
sticky, grey layer and the fine structure of the muscle cannot be
seen).
Aerobe rotting
 Judgement:

 Superficial layer is removed and from the lower layer

sample is taken for bacteriological evaluation and if it is
negative, the meat is approved for h.c. (It is suggested
for industrial processing)
Anaerobe
 ANAEROBE (Clostridia)
 It occurs mainly in the bulky muscles (Gas production,
Malignant oedema-Gas gangrene in any usual species)
 Judgement: Condemned for h.c.
Rotting
 Tests are based on the identification of the presence of
ammonia.
 Nessler test (Very sensitive) (Small watch-glass+meat+
Nessler reagent: KJ, HgJ2 and KOH)
 In the presence of ammonia an orange-colour complex (turbid)
is formed: mercury-ammonium iodide.
 Eber test (Chloride ions) (Mixture of
HCL:Alcohol:Ether=1:3:1)
Stuffiness
 Stuffiness is the result of chemical process/decomposition
upon some heat-surplus and H2S is formed from S-
containing amino acids.
 It occurs when carcasses are touched at storage
(Only the overlapping surfaces are involved) and
also after delayed evisceration.
 The meat is light, soft, having particular sweatish-
sour smell.
 Judgement:
 In EU: Condemned
stuffiness
 Tests based on the identification of H2S
 Lead acetate or nitrate test
 Cut small pieces of muscle into an Erlenmeyer flask. Pour on
10% sulphuric acid to cover the meat sample. Damp a paper
strip that is already soaked by lead-acetate with distilled water
and fixate hanging it by a cock inside the Erlenmeyer flask.
 10 min later the test is positive if the strip becomes brown or
black (Lead sulphite).
 SOME OTHER CONDITIONS AND
ABNORMALITIES OF MEAT
 Anaemia: if mild conditionally approved, if body condition is
poor: condemned
 Oedema with good body condition, sets well, dried out during
12 hours rest: approved for human consumption
 Tumors: localised and emovable: approved for human
consumption, if extended, multiple malignant and not
removable: condemned
 Atrophy, hypertrophy, hyperplasia, dysplasia, aplasia: if
localised partial condemnation if accompanied by emaciation
or extended: condemned
 SOME OTHER CONDITIONS AND
ABNORMALITIES OF MEAT
 Unborn, stillborn: total condemnation
 Congenital and hereditary malformation: condemnedand
parent approved or partial condemnation (depending on the
body condition)
 Abscesses:: Multiple septic foci (even if chronic) condemned.
It is also condemned if even is single but is accompanied by
toxaeia or anaemia or emaciation or septic, gangrenic wound
 Meat of young animals is unfit for human consumption
(disgusting, veal less than 8 days and pig younger than 14
days, lamb younger than 3 weeks). Pregnant females and up to
8 days after parturition.
 SOME OTHER CONDITIONS AND
ABNORMALITIES OF MEAT
 Gangrene (e.g. ergot), abscess: depending on extension and
if the abscess is encapsulated and no evidence for
general/systemic changes and bacteriology, residue testing are
negative, partial condemnation, otherwise total condemnation