Chemical and Microbiological Analysis of Vacuum-packed, Pasteurized Flaked Imitation Crabmeat

Various procedures were used to attempt to correlate spoilage of imitation crabmeat with sensory analysis after storage at 4°C, 10°C and 22°C. Total volatile acids, total volatile bases, cadaverine, putrescine, histamine, aerobic plate count, and proteolytic count correlated well with product spoilage at 22°C. Even though 22°C is considered abusive, the only pathogenic organism isolated was Bacillus cereus. In contrast, at 4°C and 10°C, neither the chemical nor microbial indicators were adequate to assess quality of the product. Thus sensory analysis, despite its limitations, remained the only method currently available to assess product acceptability after prolonged storage at reduced temperatures.