Discolouration in pre‐packaged beef: measurement by reflectance spectrophotometry and shopper discrimination

Summary When bright red beef and discoloured beef are sold together, shopper discrimination against the discoloured meat increases with increase in metmyoglobin content. The relationship between the level of discolouration in terms of metmyoglobin content and the proportion of total sales of discoloured meat is linear over the range tested, 5–33% metmyoglobin. The ratio of sales of discoloured beef to bright red beef is approximately 1: 2 when 20% metmyoglobin is present in the discoloured batch. There is clearly discrimination against discoloured beef, which is appreciable even at low levels of metmyoglobin. The value of using an ‘in‐store’ consumer‐study technique to evaluate a particular quality attribute of meat is established, thus providing a useful tool for similar studies on other meat characteristics. The close association established between the subjective evaluation of colour and an instrumental measurement provides a significant practical basis for using reflectance spectrophotometry in meat colour work.