Bacterial communities of fresh goat meat packaged in modified atmosphere

- We determine the growth of fortuitous flora in fresh goat meat packaged in modified atmospheres.
- Treatment A with 45% CO2 was most effective to increase the shelf life of the fresh goat meat.
- The identification studies showed that different microorganisms develop in the same samples with different storage treatments.
- The importance of the gas composition was demonstrated.

The objective of this work was to study the growth and development of fortuitous flora and food pathogens in fresh goat meat packaged under modified atmospheres containing two different concentrations of CO2. Meat samples were stored at 10 °C under two different modified-atmosphere packing (MAP) conditions: treatment A had 45% CO2 + 20% O2 + 35% N2 and treatment B had 20% CO2 + 55% O2 + 25% N2. During 14 days of storage, counts of each bacterial group and dominant species identification by 16S rRNA gene sequencing were performed to determine the microbial diversity present. The MAP condition used for treatment A was a more effective gas mixture for increasing the shelf life of fresh goat meat, significantly reducing the total number of viable bacteria and enterobacteria counts. Members of the Enterobacteriaceae family were the most common contaminants, although Hafnia alvei was dominant in treatment A and Serratia proteamaculans in treatment B. Identification studies at the species level showed that different microorganisms develop under different storage conditions, reflecting the importance of gas composition in the modified atmosphere on the bacterial community. This work provides new insights into the microbial changes of goat meat storage under different MAP conditions, which will be beneficial for the meat industry.