Nowadays consumers are highly interested in the quality of the products they eat, especially when this refers to meat. Consumption of meat from ruminant animals and its derivatives is on the increase, particularly in some countries such as Brazil, one of the main beef exporters in the world. Current analysis is a review of the different factors that affect meat quality in ruminants, with a focus on sensory analyses. Some factors throughout the entire meat chain are analyzed, or rather, from those that producers underscore to improve the quality of their products to those related with consumers' habits and beliefs. Most of the papers reviewed have been developed by researchers involved in the Meat Quality and Technology Group (University of Zaragoza and CITA of Aragon, Spain) alone or in collaboration with other local or international groups.
consumers; human health; ruminants; sensory analyses
