Osmotic Processing of Meat: Mathematical Modeling and Quality Parameters

Abstract

Osmotic processing is a mild treatment which promotes the simultaneous water removal and solute impregnation of meat, maintains the organoleptic and functional properties of the products, and extends meat product shelf life. This review has given emphasis on the mechanism of osmotic processing and on recent developments regarding the factors affecting the osmotic treatment of meat. These factors are related to the food product, the nature and properties of the osmotic agents, and the process parameters, such as temperature, concentration of solution, duration time, and agitation. Moreover, the mathematical models used to describe mass transfer phenomena during osmotic processing of meat are discussed. Specifically, the diffusion model and some of the more important empirical models (Peleg, Azuara, Hawkes and Fink, Zugarramurdi and Lupin) are discussed, and a comparison among the different models is presented. Additionally, the quality characteristics and shelf life of the resulting products are also discussed. Despite the fact that there are several studies on osmotic processing of meat, reports on the effects of treatment on final product quality are still limited.