Assessment of the antioxidative potential of dietary supplementation with α-tocopherol in low-nitrite salami-type sausages

The objective of this study was to determine the effects of dietary α-tocopherol supplementation to pigs on the lipid stability of nitrite-reduced salami-type sausages (custom-produced for this study). Fourteen crossbred pigs were divided into two equal groups. The control group (CG) was fed a basal diet containing 34 ppm α-tocopherol, and the experimental group (EG), a diet supplemented with 364 ppm α-tocopherol, both for 35 days. After slaughter, salami-type sausages were produced with the addition of different nitrite levels in the curing salt (100, 50, 25 and 0 ppm), ripened for four weeks, sliced, and packaged under a protective atmosphere (80 parts N2 to 20 parts CO2). The packed products were stored for eight weeks under simulation of the usual conditions in self-service shelves with permanent lighting (9 °C, 200 lux). The sausages were regularly assessed for their oxidative status (thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances, fatty acid pattern) and the amount of α-tocopherol, and by sensory evaluation. In the EG sausages, α-tocopherol concentrations were twice as high and TBARS were lower than in the CG sausages. The α-tocopherol in EG prevented the loss of unsaturated fatty acids during storage. Sausages of EG containing 100 ppm nitrite had the longest sensory stability. However, the biochemical parameters did not indicate that nitrite had any effect on the antioxidative potential of the sausages.