Evaluation of the storage life of vacuum packaged Australian beef

To establish the shelf-life of vacuum packaged Australian beef, 15 Strip-loins and 15 Cube-rolls for each Processor (A, B, and C) were evaluated at two week intervals (since wk 10 to 20). Steaks on the trays were placed in retail cabinets at 3 °C. Shelf-life evaluation was based on off-odor (only at week 10), microbial analysis, lipid oxidation, and color assessment by trained panelist and Hunter colorimeter. Panelists detected “slightly off-odor” in both primal cuts for Processors B and C (P < 0.05). Processor A primal cut steaks displayed better color scores as well as CIE L*, a*, b*, Chroma and Hue values during storage and display period than steaks from the other processors. Also, primal cuts from Processor A showed lower microbial counts and TBARS values with respect to other processors during the trial. Processor A cuts showed improved shelf life attributes initially which helps to explain its slow shelf-life deterioration.