Sensory and electronic nose analysis of porcine meat loaf in relation to ingredient quality

A sensory profile was carried out to evaluate the eating quality of a pork based, cooked, canned and formed meat product (meat loaf). A part of The Danish Odour Sensor System (DOSS) was used to measure headspace volatiles in the meat loaf and in all meat ingredients. A data analytical strategy involving analysis of variance-partial least squares regression (APLSR), to determine causal relationships between the samples and the sensory/electronic nose/GC-MS data, was utilized. The sensory profiling gave rise to two parameters that could be ascribed to, e.g. loss of meaty attributes, increasing levels of off-flavors and odors, and increasing texture related defects (first parameter), and color changes (second parameter). The metal oxide sensors (MOS) in the DOSS could not differentiate the meat loaf samples that were deemed unacceptable in sensory profiling from the other samples. However, when measuring the raw materials the MOS sensors correlated well to the sensory. The results indicate that measuring volatiles with the DOSS system on raw materials for processed meat products may be a feasible strategy in sensory related quality control and may even have potential in predicting the sensory quality of the final product.