Processed Meats

This third edition has been extensively revised with new and updated information. In addition, two new chapters have been added: Chapter 12, "Herbs, Spices, and Condiments" covering their uses in processed meat and poultry products, and Chapter 14, "Low Fat and Reduced Fat Meat Products," which discusses the demand for such products with emphasis on the principles involved in production and examples of formulations. The book, as with the two previous editions, is intended as a text for advanced undergraduate and beginning graduate students interested in meat processing. It is also expected that it will prove useful as a reference for industry and for governmental researchers associated with the meat and poultry industries. A.M. Pearson T.A. Gillett xi 1 Introduction to Meat Processing Meat processing as discussed in this text includes all processes utilized in altering fresh meat except for simple grinding, cutting, and mixing. In the broadest sense, this includes curing, smoking, canning, cooking, freezing, dehydration, production of intermediate-moisture products, and the use of certain additives such as chemicals and enzymes. This definition excludes cutting, grinding, and packaging of fresh meat in retail stores and in homes. In this way, the definition differentiates between (1) those processes that enter into the preservation and manufacture of meat products, and (2) those that alter the form of fresh meat in preparation for consumption.