Evolution of some physico-chemical and microbiological parameters of poultry gizzards and hearts stored under refrigeration conditions

Abstract

Nowadays, at worldwide a special attention is granted to the quality and safety of food products. In this context, the aim of the present study was to establish the maximum period of time that the poultry gizzards and hearts retains the minimum quality characteristics, so as to be accepted by consumers and at the same time not pose a threat to their health. The gizzards and hearts analyzed were packaged separately in polystyrene trays and stretch film and stored in a household refrigerator for 9 days at +3°C. In each day of storage, 5 packing units were opened for each assortment analyzed, from which samples were collected to evaluate the qualitative changes. The dynamic analysis of the pH of the studied gizzards and hearts highlighted slight increases in value from one control stage to another. Regarding easily hydrolysable nitrogen, by correlating the values obtained with the maximum limit imposed by the existing legislation (25 mg NH3/100g), it can be observed that by the 6th day of storage, the average values indicated a good product for consumption (23.34±1.55 mgNH3/100g for gizzards and 23.53±0.26 mgNH3/100g for hearts). The microbial load present in the poultry gizzards and hearts analyzed had an ascending evolution during the 9 days of control, both with respect the TNG and the number of germs from the genus Enterobacteriaceae, but variations in microbiological parameters fall within tolerance limits specified for them. Through the obtained results and considering the limits imposed by the existing standards, we can see that the 6th day of refrigeration storage is the maximum limit of the validation for the poultry gizzards and hearts.