Chengdu Kindarco Biotech Co, Ltd.
Chengdu Kindarco Biotech Co, Ltd.

How to Preserve Plant Extract in Meat Products

Factors affecting the shelf life of plant extracts 

Temperature and moisture are the two major factors that affect quality and stability of a herbal product.

For longer storage, it's good to keep them in a -20 degree freezer, if available. Other people might have their own preference, but this is how I've always seen extracts stored. I think it is better to store in the color container in the presence of Ar and keep in the freezer.


Plant extracts have the characteristics of strong antibacterial, strong antioxidant capacity, broad antibacterial spectrum, safety and low toxicity, which are unmatched by chemical additives, so they have huge development prospects. At present, plant extracts are getting more and more attention. A large number of research results show that it is possible for plant extracts to replace chemically synthesized additives as natural additives. Some developed countries have used some plant extracts in food preservation and preservation, and the types and functions of plant extracts are also increasing. In meat products, judging from the current research results, the application of plant extracts in improving product quality will become a trend. As a plant extract company, Kindarco is commited to improving the technology of extracting ingredients, so as to replace chemically synthesized additives. 


Plant extracts for shelf life extension 

The use of plant extracts for shelf life extension is becoming an appealing strategy to increase quality and health-related characteristics of fresh meat and meat products. Indeed, considering their natural origins,plant extracts for shelf life extension (such as black pepper, oregano, guarana seeds and drumstick flowers) are ideal candidates to replace synthetic antioxidants (generally considered less safe) to increase the shelf life of meat products. At the same time, these plant extracts for shelf life extension can ameliorate, either directly or indirectly, the functional value of meat products. On these bases, taking into account the more recent optimization of different extraction methods to formulate ad-hoc green antioxidant extracts, this mini-review aims to highlight the different applications of plant extracts as source of bioactive compounds able to improve shelf-life and functional properties of meat and meat products.


Spice Plant Extracts For Shelf Life Extension

Spice plants are rich in polyphenols, flavonoids, volatile oils, terpenes, alcohols, aldehydes, esters, organic acids, alkaloids and sulfur compounds. It is an important natural food additive and is widely used In the food processing industry.


Studies have shown that the pure natural plant extract of spice can not only extend the shelf life of meat products, but also improve the quality of meat products. For example, adding star anise extract to conditioned pork, the results show that it can not only effectively inhibit the total number of colonies, but also inhibit the oxidation of fat and protein in pork patties, and improve the organoleptic quality of pork patties; cinnamon extract can effectively inhibit Chinese style The increase of TBARS value (tissue thiobarbituric acid reactant) and carbonyl value in sausages, and inhibits lipid oxidation, improves the sensory quality of sausages; the ethanol extract of star anise has an effect on three common spoilage bacteria in meat products: Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Bacillus subtilis all have inhibitory effects, and the inhibitory effect on Staphylococcus aureus is more obvious; the ethanol extract of clove has an inhibitory effect on Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas fluorescens, Listeria monocytogenes, and sake milk. Bacillus has significant inhibitory and inactivation effects, and the inhibitory effect on Listeria monocytogenes is the best; essential oils such as rosemary, oregano and garlic are added to pork patties to reduce the loss of protein sulfhydryl groups and inhibit protein The oxidation of sulfur-containing amino acids improves the quality of pork pie.


Chinese herbal medicine plant extracts for shelf life extension

Chinese herbal medicine is rich in resources and has a long history of medicine. With the in-depth research on the effective ingredients of Chinese herbal medicine, the development of its extracts has great potential. Chinese herbal plants contain many active ingredients such as alkaloids, polyphenols, flavonoids, polysaccharides, terpenes, glycosides, quinones, lactones, coumarins, organic acids, oligosaccharides, cyclic peptides, proteins, etc., so they have certain anti-oxidation, antibacterial and other effects. 


A large number of studies have shown that adding Chinese herbal medicine extracts to meat products can achieve good antiseptic and fresh-keeping effects. For example, Forsythia suspensa extract can remove free radicals in the lard system and prolong the shelf life of lard; adding Eucommia ulmoides leaf extract in the diet can not only improve the immunity and antioxidant function of broilers, improve the performance of broilers, but also improve The content of unsaturated fatty acids in muscle improves the flavor and quality of meat; the alcohol extracts of honeysuckle leaves and flowers can significantly inhibit the oxidation of corn oil, soybean oil, lard, and peanut oil, among which the oxidation inhibition of lard is the most obvious; The critically extracted oregano oil has a good antioxidant effect on lard.


In addition, Chinese herbal extracts are also very effective in inhibiting bacteria in meat products. For example, the extract of Eucommia ulmoides has a strong antibacterial ability on pork products; andrographis paniculata, prunella vulgaris, bamboo leaves, oldenlandia diffusa, chicken bone grass and isatis root extract can improve the shelf life of meatballs, and andrographis has the best effect; Thymol, eugenol and menthol extracts are added to polypropylene bags, and after 16 days of storage under low-temperature air-conditioning conditions, the number of molds, yeasts and aerobic mesophilic bacteria all have a downward trend; purple salvia extract It has significant effects in maintaining the sensory quality, physical and chemical indicators, and microbiological indicators of chilled beef, and the packaging combined with the antibacterial extract has a better fresh-keeping effect.


Tea plant extracts for shelf life extension

Tea is rich in polyphenolic active compounds, these compounds have strong antioxidant activity and antibacterial effect, as natural food additives in meat products have a wide range of application prospects. Adding tea extracts, which is one kind of antioxidant plant extract, to meat products can enhance the antioxidant capacity, reduce adverse changes caused by oxidation during processing and storage, and extend the shelf life of meat products.


Black tea, green tea, and oolong tea have strong free radical scavenging ability and antioxidant ability; tea polyphenols have a good antioxidant effect on lard, and its effect increases with the increase of the concentration of tea polyphenols. At the same time, tartaric acid, Citric acid and vitamin E also have a synergistic effect on the antioxidant effect of tea polyphenols; tea polyphenols have a certain inhibitory effect on the oxidation of chicken protein; green tea extract can effectively inhibit the total number of mutton colonies and reduce the total number of volatile bases The accumulation of nitrogen and TBARS can extend the shelf life of chilled lamb; lysozyme, tea polyphenols, and polylysine can extend the shelf life of the low-temperature red intestine to more than 90 days.

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