Canada's Organic Science Cluster

Activity H.4: Alternative approaches to direct addition of nitrite/nitrate for organic cured meats

Objectives:

The current practices for production of the organic versions of cured meats use an alternative to the direct addition of nitrate from vegetable sources such as celery juice powder and converting into nitrite by bacterial starter cultures that possess nitrate reductase activity. However, these organic meats may present safety problems because they may not contain adequate residual nitrite and they lack other built-in protection against pathogens such as C. botulinum and L. monocytogenes. Conversely, they may present risks associated with nitrosamine formation when they contain high levels of residual nitrite. The use of bacterial cultures can also present a practical problem with respect to uniform distribution of brine containing starter cultures for products that require brine injection, resulting in uneven curing of the product. There is a need to address the issues of safety and stability of the organic cured meats, in addition to achieving nitrite-cured meat characteristics.

Thus the objective of this research activity over a period of 4 years is to develop effective alternatives to direct addition of nitrite for organic cured meats. Specifically, the research will aim at developing a curing mixture composed of natural ingredients or other acceptable agents, where each component of the mixture can effectuate one or more specific functions, and protocols to produce organic cured meats with nitrite-cured meat properties and in-built protection against pathogens, nitrosamine formation and lipid oxidation.

Learn More:

Interesting Results to Date:

Stay tuned for reports, newspaper articles, and extension bulletins related to this activity.

Partners and Sponsors:

en français