CONSUMER ACCEPTANCE OF DISPLAY PACKS OF BEEF STORED UNDER N2 OR CO2 IN MASTER PACKS

Display-packaged samples of beef steak and of ground beef were deliver ed to the homes of 120 panelists. Each panelist received a set of samp les of each meat. Each set consisted of one sample fleshly prepared fo r retail display from vacuum-packaged product, one retail-packaged and then stored in a master pack under N2 and one retail-packaged and the n stored under CO2. The samples in each set were prepared from the sam e strip loin or batch of coarsely ground beef and had been stored for between 21 and 23 days at 2-degrees-C The panelists completed question naires on the attributes of the meats while they were packaged, when t hey were unpackaged for cooking, and when they were eaten. The respons es to each question were tabulated, and the probability of the chi2 st atistics was calculated for each table. There were no significant diff erences in the general acceptability of the steaks from the three stor age treatments. Significant numbers of panelists judged that ground be ef prepared from vacuum-packaged product was of better colour and had less exudate, but was of poorer eating quality than the product from m aster packs. However, the majority of panelists did not distinguish be tween ground beef from the three storage treatments. The consumer resp onses indicate that controlled-atmosphere master packaging of display packs may offer a means of preserving display-ready beef for times tha t would allow wide distribution of the product through current commerc ial systems.