Development and Application of Quality Index Method Scheme in a Shelf‐Life Study of Wild and Fish Farm Affected Bogue (Boops boops, L.)

Abstract

Quality index method scheme was developed for raw bogue (Boops boops) and evaluated it in a shelf-life study, using samples from wild fish aggregations at fish farms (BF) and from area not influenced by the fish farms (BW). Different environment influenced the shelf life of bogues; thus the maximum ice storage, evaluated from cooked samples, was found to be 17 d for BF and 12 d for BW. The calculated quality indexes (QIs) evolved linearly with storage time on ice (QI(BF) = 0.968x + 0.583, R(2) = 0.947, Std. Err. Est. = 1.41; QI(BW) = 1.212x + 0.474, R(2) = 0.972, Std. Err. Est. = 0.95). The multivariable analysis was used to identify the most effective variables during spoilage evolution. The sum of all demerit points showed higher correlation (R > 0.99) then any single parameters itself, indicating that the individual parameters could not replace the usage of 20 demerit points QIM scoring scheme in sensory assessment. The impact of farming cages was observed in fat (BF > 19%; BW < 2%) and water content (BF = 55%; BW = 77%) of bogues, but also in pH, dielectric properties, thiobarbituric acid index, and volatile amine changes. High correlations of these parameters with storage time and sensory assessment were observed. The catch landings of bogue make this species very important in the Mediterranean fishery production. The effect of finfish farms makes individual fish samples of this species different in size and chemical content, thus changing the rate and in which their postmortem changes occur. The practical use of the article is a new developed and species adopted descriptive scheme for bogue, ready to use for scientific and industrial freshness assessment providing the information on fish quality and its remaining shelf life in ice, taking into account the environmental conditions such as catching ground.