Antioxidant status, lipid and color stability of aged beef from grazing steers supplemented with corn grain and increasing levels of flaxseed

Meat Sci. 2016 Jan:111:1-8. doi: 10.1016/j.meatsci.2015.07.026. Epub 2015 Aug 1.

Abstract

Angus steers were grazed on unsupplemented pasture (CNTRL), pasture supplemented with 0.7% BW cracked corn (FLAX-0), FLAX-0 with 0.125% and 0.250% BW of whole flaxseed (FLAX-1 and FLAX-2). Six steers were grazed per treatment for 70 days, with start and finish weights of 458 and 508 kg. At 24 h post slaughter, longissimus thoracis were harvested, and steaks assigned to treatments of postmortem aging time under vacuum (PM; 3, 14 and 56 days) with or without five days of aerobic exposure (AE). Meat antioxidant status was higher (P<0.05) when feeding CNTRL and FLAX-1 than FLAX-0 and FLAX-2. Under AE, lipid oxidation was highest for FLAX-2 (P<0.05), and lowest for FLAX-1. Greatest TBARs and lowest antioxidant capacity and redness values were obtained with AE and the longer PM (P<0.05). Beef oxidative stability through AE improved by adding a low flaxseed level to supplemented corn grain, but deteriorated by adding a high flaxseed level or by extending PM.

Keywords: Aging; Antioxidant; Argentine beef; Oil seeds; Oxidative stability; Pasture; Retail display.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study
  • Randomized Controlled Trial
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Animals, Inbred Strains
  • Antioxidants / analysis
  • Antioxidants / metabolism*
  • Argentina
  • Cattle
  • Diet / adverse effects
  • Diet / veterinary*
  • Dietary Fats / analysis
  • Flax / adverse effects
  • Flax / chemistry*
  • Food Packaging
  • Food Quality
  • Food Storage
  • Herbivory
  • Humans
  • Lipid Peroxidation*
  • Male
  • Meat / analysis
  • Muscle, Skeletal / growth & development
  • Muscle, Skeletal / metabolism*
  • Oxidation-Reduction
  • Pigments, Biological / analysis
  • Pigments, Biological / biosynthesis
  • Seeds / adverse effects
  • Seeds / chemistry*
  • Weight Gain
  • Zea mays / chemistry*

Substances

  • Antioxidants
  • Dietary Fats
  • Pigments, Biological