160 Chapter 7
ness) were collected and formalized. They
were merged with temperature measurement
using the theory of fuzzy sets to defi ne a
global index called “ chopping degree. ”
Few studies have dealt with the use of
on - line instrumental devices to control the
chopping process. Barbut (1998) used a fi ber
optic probe to detect, at an early stage, meat
emulsion breakdown (i.e., the response of the
probe); L * value was correlated to the cook
loss. Conductimetry has been used to measure
stability of meat emulsions (Morrison et al.
1971 ; Haq et al. 1973 ; Kato et al. 1985 ;
Koolmes et al. 1993 ), but rarely to control
chopping (Curt 1995 ). Recently, temperature
and light refl ection measurements made
during emulsifi cation were used as potential
indicators of cooking losses and gel texture
in pork sausages ( Á lvarez et al. 2007 ; Ba ñ ó n
et al. 2008 ). Fluorescence spectroscopy was
assessed for characterizing meat emulsions
and frankfurters manufactured at various fat/
lean ratios, chopping speeds, and chopping
times. Multidimensionnal data analysis
showed that batter fl uorescence spectra were
correlated to batter and frankfurters ’ texture
attributes (Allais et al. 2004 ).Process Control
Manufacturers face an important decision:
the optimal combination of raw materials,
ingredients, and process parameters to
achieve a high - quality product with low pro-
duction costs fullfi lling legal restrictions.
Several studies applied optimization methods
to fi nely comminuted products. Good quality
models are required to describe the relation-
ship between formulation variables and end -
product quality. This is still diffi cult to
achieve because different raw materials (i.e.,
meat trimmings and animal fat) show a large
variability in their biochemical and func-
tional properties (Gunvor et al. 2005 ).
Most of the studies aimed to optimize
emulsion quality through formulation.
Different optimization methods were used.during heating and to trace the gelling
process when meat batter was submitted to
pressure/heat processing (Fern á ndez - Mart í n
et al. 1997, 2002 ; Supavititpatana and
Apichartsrangkoon 2007 ). It helps to explain
the differences between the functional prop-
erties of pressure/heated and heated - only gels
(Fern á ndez - Mart í n et al. 2002 ).
Texture measurement is a macroscopic
assessment related to the product microstruc-
ture. Texture profi le analysis and the record-
ing of the maximum force required to move
a blade through the sample using the Warner
Bratzler Shear Blade Set are generally used
(Mittal and Barbut 1994 ; Hughes et al. 1997 ,
1998 ; Grigelmo - Miguel et al. 1999 ; C á ceres
et al. 2008 ).
Water and Fat Binding
In fi nely comminuted meat products, proper-
ties characterizing the degree of water and fat
binding are particularly relevant to measure.
The main ones are water - holding capacity
(WHC), emulsion stability, cooking loss,
processing yield, jelly and fat separation, and
purge accumulation (Table 7.3 ). The mea-
surements are generally performed off - line or
at - line.
On - Line and At - Line Measurements
There is a lack of on - line sensors to control
chopping and to stop the process in order
to avoid “ overchopping. ” Only temperature
sensors are commonly integrated on cutters
and mixers. It is useful to detect the endpoint
chopping temperature to determine the
optimal state of the batter. In the absence of
relevant sensors, most of the time operators
also use their know - how to decide when to
stop the chopping process. Curt et al. (2004a,
b) proposed a method to assess the batter
state at the end of chopping using operator
knowledge. At - line sensory measurements
performed by the expert (fat particle size,
size homogeneity, fi rmness, and adhesive-