Selected-ion flow-tube mass spectrometry for the identification of volatile spoilage markers for fresh pork packaged under modified atmospheres

Linyun Chen; Stefanus Tri Mardiansyah; Lotta Kuuliala; Mariem Somrani; Christophe Walgraeve; Kristof Demeestere; Frank Devlieghere

doi:10.1016/j.foodchem.2023.136318

Selected-ion flow-tube mass spectrometry for the identification of volatile spoilage markers for fresh pork packaged under modified atmospheres

Food Chem. 2023 Oct 15:423:136318. doi: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2023.136318. Epub 2023 May 6.

Authors

Linyun Chen¹, Stefanus Tri Mardiansyah², Lotta Kuuliala³, Mariem Somrani⁴, Christophe Walgraeve⁵, Kristof Demeestere⁵, Frank Devlieghere²

Affiliations

¹ Research Unit Food Microbiology and Food Preservation (FMFP), Department of Food Technology, Safety and Health, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, B-9000 Ghent, Belgium. Electronic address: Linyun.Chen@UGent.be.
² Research Unit Food Microbiology and Food Preservation (FMFP), Department of Food Technology, Safety and Health, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, B-9000 Ghent, Belgium.
³ Research Unit Food Microbiology and Food Preservation (FMFP), Department of Food Technology, Safety and Health, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, B-9000 Ghent, Belgium; Research Unit Knowledge-based Systems (KERMIT), Department of Data Analysis and Mathematical Modelling, Part of Food2Know, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, B-9000 Ghent, Belgium.
⁴ Research Unit Food Microbiology and Food Preservation (FMFP), Department of Food Technology, Safety and Health, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, B-9000 Ghent, Belgium; Departamento de Ingeniería Agronómica, Instituto de Biotecnología Vegetal, Universidad Politécnica de Cartagena, 30202 Cartagena, Spain.
⁵ Research Group Environmental Organic Chemistry and Technology (EnVOC), Department of Green Chemistry and Technology, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, B-9000 Ghent, Belgium.

PMID: 37210876
DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2023.136318

Abstract

Microbial behavior during meat storage leads to the generation of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and unpleasant off-odors. This study focused on a novel real-time analytical method, selected-ion flow-tube mass spectrometry (SIFT-MS), to monitor VOC quality and identify spoilage indicators for fresh pork stored under different packaging atmospheres (air, 70/0/30, 70/30/0, 5/30/65, 0/30/70 - v/v% O₂/CO₂/N₂) at 4 °C. A comprehensive selection methodology was used to identify compounds with good instrumental data quality as well as a strong relationship with microbial growth and olfactory rejection. Based on the volatolome quantified by SIFT-MS, storage periods and conditions can be discriminated using multivariate statistics. Acetoin (or ethyl acetate) represented a significant pork quality marker for high-O₂ conditions, whereas ethanol, 3-methylbutanal and sulfur compounds can indicate the anaerobic storage progress. Considering the applicability in monitoring different VOC profiles, SIFT-MS is expected to be promising in many storage scenarios to improve analytical efficiency and ensure reliability.

Keywords: Modified atmosphere packaging; Pork quality; SIFT-MS; Volatile organic compound.

MeSH terms

Animals
Atmosphere
Food Microbiology
Food Packaging / methods
Mass Spectrometry
Pork Meat* / analysis
Red Meat* / analysis
Reproducibility of Results
Swine
Volatile Organic Compounds* / analysis

Substances

Volatile Organic Compounds