Accurate Determination of Fat, Moisture, and Protein in Raw Meats

Accurate and rapid determination of fat in raw meat and poultry products is highly important for increasing profit. It also enables manufacturers to regulate their raw material and blending costs in a more precise manner by reducing the use of high-cost lean meat. For optimization of the use of low-cost materials, Least Cost Formulation (LCF) is usually employed, apart from satisfying the mandatory ingredient guidelines and constraints for a given product. This could be specifically difficult in an industry where there is constant fluctuation in the availability and costs of raw materials. For LCF and other process control practices to be effective, manufacturers must have a fast, accurate means of fat testing available.

The ProFat™ Meat Analyzer is the best-suited solution for precise and accurate determination of protein, moisture, and fat in raw meats and blends in a single measurement. The system integrates a direct microwave moisture measurement with data modeling for the analysis of protein and fat in different meat samples (for example, fish, turkey, chicken, pork, and beef). This multi-component, rapid analysis can be employed for process control to perform blend corrections, to release materials, and to ensure LCF. It is also possible to use the ProFat to verify and maintain the performance of in-line near-infrared (NIR) or X-ray devices. The accuracy of the system is on par with standard protein titration, oven drying, and fat extraction methods for protein, fat, and moisture, respectively, with better repeatability often noted.

A collection of six samples were acquired and analyzed to demonstrate the potential of the ProFat Meat Analyzer to reliably and accurately determine protein, moisture, and fat content in raw meats and blends.

Key System Benefits

• Rapid — analysis within 2.5 minutes
• Multi-component analysis (moisture, protein, and fat) in a single system
• Preprogrammed with different raw meat and pre-blend methods
• Low-energy solution, green, does not produce hazardous waste
• Allows Least Cost Formulation (LCF) and stringent process control
• Enables easy verification of in-line NIR and X-ray systems
• Stable, prevents drifting (eliminates the need for recalibration)
• Direct determination of moisture in entire sample — employs AOAC 985.14 (moisture in meat and poultry products) and AOAC 2008.06 (moisture and fat in meats)

Sample Preparation and Analysis

Different raw meat samples were prepped by using AOAC 983.18 (meat and meat products, preparation of test sample). Before the analysis, samples were blended using a commercial-grade food processor and thoroughly mixed with the help of a spatula. Analysis of each sample was performed in triplicate on the ProFat Meat Analyzer.

Figure 1. ProFat™ Meat Analyzer

Results

The precision and accuracy of the ProFat Meat Analyzer for various raw meat samples are illustrated in Tables 1 and 2. Here, the average of three ProFat replicates has been compared with protein, moisture, and fat values acquired by using the AOAC Official Method of Analysis 981.10 (crude protein in meat), 950.46 (moisture in meat), and 960.39 (fat in meat). From Table 1, it can be observed that the deviation between the ProFat and Kjeldahl results was in the range of 0.04%–0.35% for protein, the deviation between the ProFat and the oven results was in the range of 0.01%–0.16% for moisture, and the deviation between the ProFat and Soxhlet results was in the range of 0.00%–0.22% for fat.

Table 1. Accuracy of ProFat for fat, moisture, and protein in raw meats and blends

Table 2 illustrates that the standard deviations were in the range of 0.00%–0.08% for protein, 0.02%–0.28% for moisture, and 0.02%–0.36% for percentage fat on the ProFat. These results demonstrate the reliability of ProFat to match prevalent reference chemistry results for the analysis of protein, fat, and moisture in different raw meat samples and blends.

Table 2. Precision of ProFat for fat, moisture, and protein in raw meats and blends

This information has been sourced, reviewed and adapted from materials provided by CEM Corporation.

For more information on this source, please visit CEM Corporation.