With the objective of following the microbiological e physical-chemical stability of mechanically separated meat (MSM) of different origins and stored during 99 days at -18 °C, a previous mixture of preservative (sodium nitrite) and antioxidant (sodium erythorbate) in MSM obtained from two poultry breeds: broiler breeders and white layers, was made. In the MSM of each breed, three different treatments were carried out: 1) control (without additives), 2) addition of 150 ppm nitrite and 3) addition of 150 ppm nitrite and 500 ppm erythorbate. The results obtained demonstrated that nitrite added separately did not hinder lipid oxidation, evaluated through the TBARS index, or the color changes, evaluated with a colorimeter. On the other hand, the addition of nitrite together with erythorbate was effective in reducing the problems of lipid oxidation during prolonged frozen storage. The evaluation of the microbiological stability of the MSM, carried out in the first and last day for mesophilic microorganisms, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Clostridium perfringens and Pseudomonas spp., and every 15 days for psycrotrophic microorganisms, did not indicate a significant variation in the counts, as a function of the treatment applied. Salmonella spp. was not detected in the samples analyzed. Considering the improvement in the oxidative stability, the addition of nitrite (150 ppm) and erythorbate (500 ppm) in MSM broiler breeders to be frozen stored for a long time can be recommended.
spent hens; MSM; conservation; sodium nitrite; sodium erythorbate
