Impact of Retail Case Type and Lighting Intensity on Instrumental Color Traits of Ground Beef Patties

Abstract

Abstract The objective of this study was to determine the influence of retail case type and lighting intensity on color stability of ground beef patties. Ground 80:20 beef was procured from a local retail establishment between 7 and 10 d from the box date and ground through a 9.5 mm grinder plate, then formed into 150.25 g patties. Patties were then individually packaged in PVC-overwrap packages and randomly assigned into one of four treatments: open, multideck cases with 3000 K lighting (OPEN3000), open, 3500 K lighting (OPEN3500), enclosed, multideck cases with doors with 3000 K lighting (DOOR3000), and enclosed multideck at 3500 K lighting (DOOR3500). Patties were displayed for 7 d and instrumental color values (CIE L*, a*, and b*) were taken every 24 h. Data were analyzed as a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement with repeated measures, with case type, lighting intensity, and their interaction serving as fixed effects. Patties in DOOR cases possessed greater L* values (P < 0.05) than OPEN cases on d 3 of display. A similar trend existed for a*, where DOOR patties were redder (P < 0.05) than OPEN patties from d 2 to the end of display, and b* values were higher (P < 0.05) in DOOR cases from d 1 to d 4 of display. Patties from the DOOR cases also possessed increased chroma values (P < 0.05) from d 1 to 6 of display, and decreased (indicating more red) hue angle values from d 3 to the end of display. No differences were observed between lighting intensity for any trait evaluated (P ≥ 0.293). These results indicate patties placed in enclosed retail cases with doors are lighter, redder, and more intense in color during display compared to traditional open-front cases, which indicates greater color stability.