Differentiation of commercial ground beef products and correlation between metabolites and sensory attributes: A metabolomic approach

Ting Jiang; Christy L Bratcher

doi:10.1016/j.foodres.2016.11.002

Differentiation of commercial ground beef products and correlation between metabolites and sensory attributes: A metabolomic approach

Food Res Int. 2016 Dec:90:298-306. doi: 10.1016/j.foodres.2016.11.002. Epub 2016 Nov 11.

Authors

Ting Jiang¹, Christy L Bratcher²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Animal Sciences, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849, USA.
² Department of Animal Sciences, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849, USA. Electronic address: cbracher@auburn.edu.

PMID: 29195885
DOI: 10.1016/j.foodres.2016.11.002

Abstract

Three traditional grinds (commodity products) and 7 non-traditional grinds (branded products) were obtained to investigate the metabolites in ground beef associated with beef flavor or off-flavor. Three packaging methods were used: traditional overwrap, modified atmosphere package, and clear plastic retail chub. Samples were collected for sensory evaluation and metabolic profiling utilizing LC/MS. Principal component analysis was conducted for classification of grind source or packaging method. Partial least squares regression was applied to investigate the relationship between metabolic data and sensory data. Grass-fed beef and natural beef products were clearly separated from the other grinds. A total of 576 metabolites were registered. Thirty-three compounds were selected as the most important ones differentiating beef grinds. Twenty-two compounds were selected as the most important ones associated with beef flavor and off-flavor. In conclusion, metabolomic approach was effective to determine the most important compounds associated with certain quality characteristics of beef.

Keywords: Ground beef; Metabolomics; Multivariate analysis; Sensory attributes.