Estimation of frozen storage time or temperature by kinetic modeling of the Kramer shear resistance and water holding capacity (WHC) of hake (Merluccius merluccius, L.) muscle

• The rate of shear resistance increase and WHC loss upon frozen storage followed an Arrhenius pattern.
• A good agreement was found between predicted and observed values of the Arrhenius models.
• This suggests a potential usefulness of the models for quality management and shelf life estimation.

The present work addresses the kinetic modeling of Kramer shear resistance and water holding capacity (WHC), two relevant quality parameters known to vary with frozen storage time and temperature in hake (Merluccius merluccius) muscle. Fillets from 190 hake were stored frozen at −10 °C, −20 °C, −30 °C, and −80 °C for up to 23, 104, 147, and 150 weeks respectively. Kramer shear resistance was adjusted to zero-order kinetics, whereas WHC was in addition fitted to a first order and to a fractional conversion model. The temperature dependence of (i) the rate of WHC loss and (ii) the instrumental shear resistance increase during frozen storage, both followed an Arrhenius type pattern. A good agreement was found between predicted and observed values for both of them, which indicated their potential usefulness for quality management and the estimation of remaining shelf life.