Rapid assessment of rancidity in complex meat products by front face fluorescence spectroscopy

Front face autofluorescence from meat products was measured to elucidate the method's ability to measure and predict lipid, oxidation. Three sample sets were studied: turkey meat with added aldehydes, raw and heat-treated turkey meat, and meat loaf at different process, steps., Multivariate regression was used to correlate against sensory assessed rancidity, volatile compounds (GC-MS), and TBARS. Results verified that the increase in fluorescence during storage originates from aldehydes reacting with the meat matrix. Fluorescence modeled sensory assessed rancidity at the same accuracy as volatile compounds (R = 0.9), but was superior to TBARS. Front face fluorescence seems to be a powerful tool for nondestructive analysis of oxidation progress in meat products.