VISUAL AND SPECTROPHOTOMETRIC EVALUATIONS OF BEEF COLOR STABILITY

Slices of longissimus and gluteus medius muscles from 96 beef steers were displayed under simulated retail display conditions. Meat color display life was calculated by methods termed (1) change between days and (2) days to threshold. The days to threshold approach yielded estimates of color display life which were more consistent among slaughter groups of steers and within muscles. Longissimus had a longer color display life than gluteus medius. Reflectance measurements of beef color provided similar relative estimates of color display life as visual assessment. The accumulation of metmyoglobin at the onset of discoloration was associated with variances which were more homogeneous than those for percentage discoloration determined by visual assessment.