Influence of temperature on the rate of post-mortem metabolism and water-holding capacity of bovine neck muscles

Strips of forty bovine neck muscles were placed at temperatures in the range -1° to +30°C within 45 min of slaughter and stored for up to 24 h. Strips were taken at various times during storage and assayed for pH, 'R' value (degree of transformation of ATP to IMP) and ATP concentration. The water-holding capacity (WHC) of the intact muscle was compared with the WHC of a salted muscle homogenate prepared at each sampling time. The rate of pH fall post mortem was relatively low around +5°C and increased at lower or higher temperatures. ATP concentration showed a delay phase dependent on storage temperature and a subsequent rate of depletion which was also temperature dependent. The patterns of change in WHC of the muscle samples and the salted homogenates differed, the former showing a rapid fall to a fairly steady level shortly after initiation of storage, the latter showing no appreciable change until the onset of rigor. It is suggested that salting meat at any time prior to the onset of rigor will confer improved WHC and that the temperature of storage post mortem should be chosen to induce low rates of ATP turnover so as to prolong the feasible delay between slaughter and salting.