Sensory evaluation of boar-taint-containing minced meat, dry-cured ham and dry fermented sausage by a trained expert panel and consumers

- Sensory evaluation of boar meat by expert panels and consumers.
- Estimation of odour thresholds in meat products.
- Diluting tainted meat is a successful strategy to reduce boar taint in meat.
- Dry-curing is a promising approach to reduce boar taint in ham.

One of the main issues related to entire male pigs is the occurrence of boar taint, an off-odour, which compromises meat consumability. In this study, odour thresholds (indole: 24-65 µg kg−1, skatole: 44-89 µg kg−1, androstenone: 121-342 µg kg−1) for the boar taint compounds were estimated in minced meat, dry fermented sausage and dry-cured ham. Afterwards, sensory evaluation of these products containing 10% tainted meat (minced meat and dry fermented sausage) or moderate boar taint compound levels (dry-cured ham) occurred. The beneficial effect of diluting tainted meat was demonstrated, as no significant difference in consumability was observed between gilts and 10% tainted meat by experts as well as consumers. Also dry-curing proved a promising technique for masking boar taint and preventing consumer dissatisfaction. The obtained results demonstrate the applicability of the estimated thresholds in meat as a tool for identifying masking and reducing strategies on the perception of boar taint.