Veterinary and sanitary determination of meat freshness degree

The purpose of the study is to conduct a veterinary and sanitary assessment of the freshness of pork and beef and to give a comparative assessment of the change in the degree of freshness of pork and beef depending on the shelf life. The study was conducted in the laboratory of veterinary and sanitary examination of the KSKU “Yenisei Department of Veterinary Medicine” in Lesosibirsk. The research material was chilled meat on the bones of pork and beef. The studies were carried out over 16 days. An organoleptic examination of the meat showed that the pork lost its freshness on the 8th day and became of poor quality on the 12th day. The freshness of the beef went away on the 11-12th day, closer to the 15-16th day it became stale. The results of physical and chemical studies of pork and beef to determine the reaction of the environment (pH) showed that the pork retained its freshness for 6 days (pH 5.6-6.0, corresponds to GOST 51478-99). On days 7-11, the reaction of the medium showed a pH of 6.2-6.5, which indicates questionable freshness. On the 12th day, the pH is 6.5, which indicates that the meat is stale. The beef was fresh for 8 days (pH 6.2), questionable freshness remained for 14 days (pH 6.4), on the 15th day it became stale (pH 6.5.) According to the results of a study of the reaction to primary protein breakdown products with copper sulfate in the broth, pork was fresh for 3 days, beef for 5 days, a negative reaction indicates the appearance of questionable freshness of the meat, this corresponds to GOST 23392-2016. Pork went from a state of questionable freshness to stale on the 8th day, and beef on the 11th day. Based on the results of microscopy of fingerprint smears, questionable freshness appeared in pork on the 4th-5th day, in beef on the 10th day, as evidenced by an increase in the number of microbes on the surface of the meat to 20-30 in the field of view, appearance in the microscope decomposed meat tissues. Pork became stale on the 11th-12th day, beef on the 12th day, while in the field of view of the microscope more than 30 microbes were found on the surface of the meat, intense staining of fingerprint smears and a lot of decomposed tissues. Compared to pork, beef can be stored longer by 2-3 days and retain its freshness. Since pork meat is fatty, it spoils faster and is more favorable for the development of various defects.