Application of near infrared reflectance (NIR) spectroscopy to identify potential PSE meat

Abstract BACKGROUND Pale, soft and exudative ( PSE ) meat is a quality problem that causes a large economic loss to the pork industry. In the present work, near infrared ( NIR ) quantification and identification methods were used to investigate the feasibility of differentiating potential PSE meat from normal meat. RESULTS NIR quantification models were developed to estimate meat pH and colour attributes ( L *, a *, b *). Promising results were reported for prediction of muscle pH ( R 2 CV = 70.10%, RPD CV = 1.83) and L * ( R 2 CV = 77.18%, RPD CV = 1.91), but it is still hard to promote to practical application at this level. The Factorisation Method applied to NIR spectra could differentiate potential PSE meat from normal meat at 3 h post‐mortem. Correlation analysis showed significant relationship between NIR data and LF‐NMR T 2 components that were indicative of water distribution and mobility in muscle. PSE meat had unconventionally faster energy metabolism than normal meat, which caused greater water mobility. CONCLUSION NIR spectra coupled with the Factorisation Method could be a promising technology to identify potential PSE meat. The difference in the intensity of H 2 O absorbance peaks between PSE and normal meat might be the basis of this identification method. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry