EFFECT OF PACKAGING ENVIRONMENT ON QUALITY CHANGES OF SMOKED SPANISH MACKEREL UNDER REFRIGERATION

A study was conducted on smoked Spanish mackerel packed in polyamide u nder atmosphere (control), low-oxygen and vacuum environments under re frigeration (5C), Quality changes were observed for a duration of 12 w eeks. Moisture contents and thiobarbituric acid reaction substance (TB ARS) values of all samples were significantly (P<0.05) increased while textural firmness gradually decreased during refrigerated storage, Th e samples turned darker in all packaging environments. Microbial count s increased during storage. The result from sensory evaluation showed that all samples were still acceptable in all attributes studied after 12 weeks of storage; however, samples in low-oxygen and vacuum packag ing environments were significantly more desirable in terms of saltine ss, smoked flavor and overall acceptability compared with atmospheric packaging.